An international investment group led by CVC Capital Partners (Frankfurt) has acquired the Empe group (HQ: Empe-Werke Ernst Pelz GmbH & Co KG, Dieselweg 10, D-82538 Geretsried). According to the Board, increasing the capitalisation will ensure that the company continues to be "an independent and competitive player within the international automobile industry". Empe is one of the leading suppliers of car interiors and has 2,600 employees at 15 European and American production sites. The company describes itself as a systems supplier for door and side interior panels, interior roofing trim and hat racks as well as wood and technical surfaces. Daniel Maurer, Empe spokesman, confided to Plasteurope.com that the company is using DM 35m worth of plastics annually; these include PP, PE, polyurethane and also some glass-fibre reinforced plastics. Empe reported consolidated group turnover of DM 500m for the business year 1994-95 (to March 31), up from DM 481m for the previous year. Profits were merely claimed to be an improvement over last year. Investigation by the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" however found a profit before tax at the group level to be DM 16.5m (previous year DM 9.2m) for 1993-94.

Peter P. Strohmaier (Technology and Distribution) and Hartmut P. Scheurer (Marketing) will have full responsibility for operations and strategy. Their highest priority since the takeover has been to establish the Empe Group as a complete supplier of vehicle interiors on an international scale. The directors' objective is to double turnover in the medium term. In the short term their intention is to intensify cooperation with their American partner, Cambridge, "one of the leading world manufacturers of plastic car interior products".

Empe opened a Development and Technology Centre in Ingolstadt in April 1995. Additional investment of about DM 100m is planned during the next few years, including the development of new interior products. The emphasis will be on "natural" reinforcing materials, such as flax instead of glass-fibre. An Empe spokesman told Plasteurope.com that it anticipates using 10,000 t of flax in 1996.

READER SERVICE: Company profile Empe: PIE-No. 37775 – Basic information about the company, products and customers in addition to the Development and Technology Centre: PIE-No. 37828 (all in German).