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Combining strengths

ASSA ABLoY takes over uK door sealing specialist Lorient

ASSA ABLOY has announced its acquisition of Lorient, a leading UK-based designer and manufacturer of high performance door sealing systems with half of sales exported outside of the UK and EU.

“I am very pleased to welcome Lorient and their employees into the ASSA ABLOY Group. This acquisition delivers on our strategy to strengthen our position in the mature markets through adding complementary products and solutions to our core business,” says Nico Delvaux, President and CEO of ASSA ABLOY.

“Lorient is a very attractive addition to the EMEA division thanks to its strong position in the UK fire protection market. It allows us to offer a comprehensive door sealing portfolio alongside innovative drop-down seals and finger protection solutions from Planet GDZ, which we acquired earlier this year in Switzerland,” says Neil Vann, Executive Vice-President of ASSA ABLOY and head of the EMEA division.

Lorient was established in 1979 and has around 135 employees. The head office is located in Newton Abbot, Devon, UK. Visit: www.assaabloy.com

Sika acquires Romanian market leader in waterproofing systems

Sika has agreed to acquire Arcon Membrane Srl, a leading manufacturer of roofing and waterproofing systems in Romania.

Through the acquisition, Sika will significantly strengthen its position in the Romanian market and extend its product portfolio to meet the increasing demand for complete solutions in the roofing and waterproofing markets. The acquired business generates annual sales of CHF 23 million.

Arcon is based in Sfântu-Gheorghe, 200km north of Bucharest. In its fully automated manufacturing facility it produces technologically advanced bituminous membranes, with the potential to also serve other South East European markets. Furthermore, Arcon’s product portfolio also includes thermal insulation systems for facades and roofs, combining EPS (expanded polystyrene) sheets and bituminous membranes.

Ivo Schädler, regional manager EMEA: “Arcon’s market leading position, comprehensive product portfolio, and established distribution network will support our growth strategy by opening up new cross-selling opportunities, as well as increasing our market access and the penetration of key projects. We would like to welcome the Arcon employees to our Sika team and look forward to growing our business together.” Visit: www.sika.com

smurfit kappa increases presence in france with new acquisition

Smurfit Kappa Group has expanded its product range in France with the acquisition of Papcart, a specialist in offset printing and conversion of cardboard and corrugated board consumer packaging,

The strategic acquisition enables Smurfit Kappa to extend its portfolio with a comprehensive range for the luxury goods, wines & spirits, FMCG and bag-in-box markets. This will build on the group’s already strong presence in the consumer packaging segments and corrugated board solutions for perfume and food.

Established over 70 years ago, Papcart is equipped with the latest generation of offset printers, die-cutters, folder-gluers and finishing equipment and offers the widest spectrum of finishes required for gift and premium packaging by combining acrylic or UV inks, specific varnishes, hot and cold foil gilding, embossing and lamination to meet even the most complex customer needs.

Jean-Christophe Bugeon, CEO of Smurfit Kappa France added: “We are delighted to welcome the Papcart employees into the company. More and more companies are seeking more sustainable packaging alternatives and we can add an even wider choice of premium solutions to our offering.” Visit: www.smurfitkappa.com

E.ON and Clever form JV for ultra-fast electric car charging

e-mobility Service Provider Clever and e.oN have announced a joint venture for building and operating ultra-fast chargers along the freeways throughout Scandinavia. ‘ultra-Fast Charging Venture Scandinavia’ will aim to connect cities in Denmark, Norway and Sweden with a total of 48 ultra-fast charging sites.

The joint venture is fulfilling a promise to the european Commission’s Connecting europe Facility (CeF) programme to build 28 cofinanced sites in Denmark and Sweden. It will be a charge point operator, where the partners will provide more ultra-fast charging stations and better customer experience for drivers of eVs across borders. In 2020 all 48 sites are planned to be operational. e-mobility customers of Clever, e.oN and third party operators will get access to the charging stations.

The two operators – Clever and e.oN Drive – will remain competitors in other service categories. e.oN Drive Infrastructure will furthermore deploy ultra-fast charging sites in Germany, uK, France and Italy as part of the eu CeF programme. Visit: www.eonenergy.com

LINKINGuP

Axel Johnson moves into Czech power transmission market

Axel Johnson International’s Industrial Solutions business group has purchased a majority stake in Arkov, a Czech distributor of mechanical power transmission and hydraulics products.

Arkov is a well-recognised industrial player on the Czech market, being one of the country’s largest authorised distributors of SKF and Schaeffler products. Founded in 1992, Arkov has 80 employees and eight branch offices covering the central regions of the Czech Republic. With net sales of around €7.8 million and most of its sales in the MRO segment, Arkov distributes several strong international and domestic brands.

“Arkov has a strong position on the local market that will strengthen Industrial Solutions’ offering and expand our geographical footprint,” says Ola Sjölin, Managing Director, Industrial Solutions. Sjölin adds that Arkov also works closely with SKF in service and maintenance, which will strengthen Industrial Solutions’ relationship to SKF.

Jiri Urban, director of Arkov, added: “We think that working together will create great opportunities on the customer side as well as the supplier side, increasing our share on the Czech market.” Visit: www.axeljohnson.com

Duroc acquires Herber Engineering

Duroc has signed an agreement to acquire all shares in Herber Engineering AB. Herber manufactures advanced hydraulic and electrical tube bending machinery for cold tube forming. The company also offers customised solutions and services, replacement parts and technical support to the market.

Customers are found in several segments, such as automotive, aerospace, furniture and HVAC (heating, ventilation and air condition) around the world. The company has approximately 20 employees and revenues of approximately SEK 50 million. The operation is located in Värnamo, Jönköping County, Sweden.

“We are proud to add Herber to Duroc’s portfolio of subsidiaries. Herber will be a part of the business area Industrial Trade, that including Herber has revenues of approximately SEK 550 million on an annual basis. There are good opportunities for synergies within in the business area, e.g. in geographical representation and sales,” says a company spokesperson. Visit: www.duroc.com

samson becomes ‘largest European slurry tanker producer’

Denmark-based Samson Group has taken over the activities of Pichon Industries – a company which produces a wide range of slurry tankers, implements and muck spreaders in its two facilities in France and Poland.

With the acquisition of Pichon, which was put into receivership in November 2018, Samson is set to become the largest European player in the field of slurry tankers.

In future, Samson says it will be responding strongly to the increased focus on the use of natural fertiliser for agriculture – “A development that undoubtedly will speed up a consolidation amongst manufacturers due to the financial strength needed to fund the required product development.”

The products made at Samson’s factory in Viborg are aimed at contractors and large animal operations. PICHON’s products are mainly designed for small and medium-sized farms and medium-sized contractors. The company produces slurry tankers from 5m3 up to 30m3 using the vacuum filling technique, while SAMSON’s models start at 16m3 and go up to 35m3 based on its unique ejector filling technique. On the spreader side, PICHON starts at 8m3 while SAMSON’s newly developed US series goes up to 40m3 . Visit: www.samson-agro.com

Vossloh completes purchase of STRABAG’s rail milling business

Rail technology specialist Vossloh has successfully completed the acquisition of the rail milling business of STRABAG Rail GmbH.

The acquired unit, which consists of four milling machines and 30 employees, will be integrated in the Berlin-based subsidiary Alpha Rail Team in the lifecycle Solutions division and expands the already existing Vossloh milling business significantly.

Vossloh is active in rail technology markets worldwide. The company’s core business is in the field of rail infrastructure. Its activities in the area of rail infrastructure are organised into the three divisions of Core Components, Customised modules and lifecycle Solutions. Visit: www.vossloh.com