On 1 April 2017, Steinbacher Dämmstoff (Erpfendorf / Austria; www.steinbacher.at) is acquiring Kingspan Gefinex (Pritzwalk / Germany; www.kingspangefinex.de). The acquisition is being made by Steinbacher subsidiary Interdämmstoff Deutschland (Oranienbaum-Wörlitz / Germany). No financial details are being disclosed.

As a specialist for acoustic and moisture protection, Gefinex manufactures products including footfall noise insulation, moisture barriers and expansion joint profiles in extrusion foamed polyethylene (XPE). The company, which was founded in 1984, belonged to the Swedish Fagerdala for many years and then to the Irish CRH, before being acquired in 2011 by Kingspan (Kingscourt / Ireland; www.kingspan.com). According to the company’s balance sheet, which is subject to mandatory publication, Kingspan Gefinex achieved sales of EUR 11.4m with 89 employees in 2015.

Steinbacher will continue to market the "Gefinex” products under this same name, as one of the leading brands on the European XPE market. The family company from Austria, which was founded in 1962, supplies polymer-based (PU, XPE, EPS) insulating materials for building construction and technical systems in buildings. Steinbacher started out with PU systems, moving into XPE in 1977 (it is currently one of the biggest suppliers in Central Europe) and then into EPS in 1988. The company reports sales of about EUR 80m. It has some 300 employees in Austria and additionally operates a facility close to the Polish capital of Warsaw.