Ems Group (Herrliberg / Switzerland; www.ems-group.com) has acquired automotive supplier Eftec (Romanshorn / Switzerland; www.eftec.ch) for USD 80m. Ems, which specialises in performance polymers, fine chemicals and engineering, says the transaction, agreed 8 October 2007, will be completed as soon as approval has been received from the cartel authorities.

Ems previously owned 30% of Eftec in the US, 70% of its European business and 60% of its Asian business. H.B. Fuller (Willow / USA; www.hbfuller.com), which held the majority of the remaining shares, will now sell them to the Swiss company. A 20% share of Eftec in Asia will remain with automotive supplier Nittoku (Saitama City / Japan; www.nittoku.co.jp).

Eftec will be assigned to the Ems’ performance polymers segment but, as an Ems spokesperson explained, will have little or no point of contact with its core polyamide business. In 2006, the company posted sales of CHF 369m (about EUR 230m). Eftec, which is active in the fields of bonding, protection and sealing, has its key sales markets in Germany, the US, China and Spain. It develops and produces application systems at 17 sites globally and also manufactures equipment used for conveyor belt processing in car production. Half of the global workforce of 728 works in Europe, 25% in the US and a further 25% in Asia.

In the first nine months of the current year, Ems Group increased sales by 11% to just under CHF 1.2 bn (CHF 1 bn in the 2006 period). It says the acquisition, which is being financed from its own funds, will not have any major influence on Group accounting for 2007. For the year as a whole, Ems expects growth in both sales and EBIT to approach 10%.