BOAL Extrusion has completed a targeted upgrade at its De Lier aluminium-processing plant in the Netherlands, expanding the maximum height of profiles that its existing stretching line can handle from 150 mm to 200 mm. The 33% increase refers to the available profile-height range, not to overall extrusion output, sales volume or the number of greenhouses constructed. The supplier announced the work on 29 September 2026 and says the installation is operational.
In its first-party technical report, BOAL explains that it retained its eight-inch extrusion press and modified the downstream stretcher’s jaws and control system. Aluminium sections emerge from the press and cool before the line applies controlled tension to straighten them. The former stretcher could not handle every tall profile that the press itself was capable of extruding.
More greenhouse profile work can stay in De Lier
The change is especially relevant to the supply chain for commercial greenhouse construction. BOAL says some larger greenhouse-related aluminium profiles formerly had to be processed in the group’s Shepshed plant in the United Kingdom because the Dutch line could not stretch them. The De Lier upgrade allows more of that work to be completed locally and may free British capacity for UK customer orders.
This is a change in manufacturing capability and the allocation of processing work, not a stated capacity expansion in tonnes per year. The supplier has not published a quantified reduction in delivery times, additional sales or new greenhouse contracts attributable to the modification.
Automation and material handling
BOAL says the renewed jaws distribute tension more evenly across aluminium sections, which could limit deformation and stretching losses. The company also reports fewer manual steps, with Italian specialist SMF supporting engineering and integration. Installation followed an initial assessment, design and production process in under six months. These are the supplier’s operational descriptions, not independent measurements of waste reduction.
The additional range could expand design options for greenhouse framing and other structures that need larger cross-sections. For designers, relevant decisions include load requirements, geometry and material use; height alone does not prove that a section is stronger or suited to a particular greenhouse specification.
What remains unknown
BOAL has not disclosed the investment cost, incremental annual output, greenhouse customer orders or a measured effect on material yield. Those figures are needed before the upgrade can be assessed as a quantified production-capacity gain.
Key takeaways
- BOAL’s De Lier stretcher can now process aluminium profiles up to 200 mm high, compared with 150 mm previously.
- The 33% increase is in profile-height range, not extrusion throughput or revenue.
- Some greenhouse-profile finishing can move from Shepshed to De Lier, but commercial savings and contract volumes are not disclosed.
