In a deal retroactive to 1 January, German tyre and technical elastomers manufacturer Continental (Hanover; www.conti-online.com) has sold its subsidiary Stankiewicz (Adelheidsdorf / Germany; www.stankiewicz.de) to Dutch private equity investor Gilde Buy-Out Fund (Utrecht; www.gilde.nl). A purchase price was not announced.

The German manufacturer of noise insulation systems for automotive applications was part of the ContiTech division taken over by the German tyre maker as part of Phoenix (Hamburg / Germany; www.phoenix-ag.com) in 2004. The sale is still subject to approval by the Phoenix supervisory board as well as competition authorities.

In recent years, Stankiewicz has built up an international presence as an automotive supplier, with nine plants in six countries. In 2005 it had sales of EUR 270m and a workforce of 2,100 worldwide. The new private equity owner, which will retain all production locations, said the takeover is part of its plan to expand in the automotive sector. Stankiewicz general manager Oliver Hafner said he sees "excellent opportunities" for further growth, not least because vehicle acoustics will play an increasingly important role in future.

Apart from the main site at Adelheidsdorf, the company has production facilities at Harburg, Straubing and Friedrichroda in Germany, Zakup / Czech Republic, Grobbendonk / Belgium, Sauzet / France, Poznan / Poland and Spartanburg, South Carolina / USA. Stankiewicz additionally has partnerships in Italy, Brazil and Japan. Its portfolio includes PU-based high expansion foam absorbers, engine encapsulation systems of glass fibre-reinforced PP, EVA-based carpet insulators, viscoelastic PU moulding foam, door sealing elements of polyolefin foam as well as front wall and wheelhouse liners.