MÖLLERGROUP
Seven auto supply units sold to Arques Industries / Concentration on German and Japanese OEMs
Private equity investor Arques Industries (Starnberg / Germany; www.arques.de) will acquire seven plastics components plants in France, Spain and Brazil with total sales of EUR 230m from MöllerGroup (Bielefeld / Germany; www.moellergroup.com), subject to anti-trust approval. No financial details of the transaction have been disclosed. This is the second recent automotive deal for Arques, which in September of this year acquired anti-vibration systems Woco Michelin (Amsterdam / The Netherlands) – see Plasteurope.com of 21.09.2007.
MöllerGroup said the “reorganisation” of its automotive division involves individual operating companies of subsidiary MöllerTech International (Nuneaton / UK). In a statement, managing shareholder Felix von Möller said the family-run business is responding to changing market requirements in design and development services for the automotive industry. In 2006, MöllerGroup said it was aiming to grow sales to EUR 600m by 2010. However, in view of the divestment of activities accounting for nearly half of current turnover of more than EUR 500m, this looks doubtful.
MöllerGroup said the “reorganisation” of its automotive division involves individual operating companies of subsidiary MöllerTech International (Nuneaton / UK). In a statement, managing shareholder Felix von Möller said the family-run business is responding to changing market requirements in design and development services for the automotive industry. In 2006, MöllerGroup said it was aiming to grow sales to EUR 600m by 2010. However, in view of the divestment of activities accounting for nearly half of current turnover of more than EUR 500m, this looks doubtful.
 Felix von Möller (Photo: MöllerGroup) |
Likely to be part of the sale packaging are French subsidiaries MöllerTech SAS with plants in Chateauroux, Sens-St. Clément and Verrières-le-Buisson and MöllerTech Valenplast SAS in Lieu St-Amand, along with the Spanish affiliates MöllerTech SA (Amurrio) and MöllerTech Orense (Pereiro de Aguiar) and MöllerTech Brasil (Jundiai / Brazil). Apparently, only the MöllerTech activities in Romania, UK and Japan, as well as the Slovakian plant opened in 2006 to supply Peugeot, will remain in the group – see Plasteurope.com of 10.03.2006.
Taken together, the facilities being sold – which manufacture interior parts such as tray systems, seat components and trunk linings – are operating profitably, an Arques spokeswoman told PIE. However, she was unable to say whether they were also individually profitable.
Automotive suppliers in France, which, like MöllerTech, do a large proportion of their business with French OEMs, say that for several years they have had to contend with the OEMs' continuously shrinking production, a complaint echoed by plastics machinery manufacturers. Associations representing French plastics processing companies supplying the automotive industry have been trying for some time to “contain the damage”, but it was not until early 2007 that the situation began to improve.
While moving away from its faltering French customers, Möller plans to concentrate on German and Japanese OEMs, which evidently promise more lucrative business. The group said it intends to concentrate its financial resources in future on meeting the increasingly complex and stringent requirements of these OEMs. According to the managing shareholder, every step that contributes to the “established supplier’s” further expansion in the interior segment for the German and Japanese automotive industry is important.
In 2000 and 2001, Möller had profitability issues, but achieved stabilisation in subsequent years. In 2005, employees at Bielefeld agreed to longer working hours as a financial contribution towards safeguarding jobs at the site.
Taken together, the facilities being sold – which manufacture interior parts such as tray systems, seat components and trunk linings – are operating profitably, an Arques spokeswoman told PIE. However, she was unable to say whether they were also individually profitable.
Automotive suppliers in France, which, like MöllerTech, do a large proportion of their business with French OEMs, say that for several years they have had to contend with the OEMs' continuously shrinking production, a complaint echoed by plastics machinery manufacturers. Associations representing French plastics processing companies supplying the automotive industry have been trying for some time to “contain the damage”, but it was not until early 2007 that the situation began to improve.
While moving away from its faltering French customers, Möller plans to concentrate on German and Japanese OEMs, which evidently promise more lucrative business. The group said it intends to concentrate its financial resources in future on meeting the increasingly complex and stringent requirements of these OEMs. According to the managing shareholder, every step that contributes to the “established supplier’s” further expansion in the interior segment for the German and Japanese automotive industry is important.
In 2000 and 2001, Möller had profitability issues, but achieved stabilisation in subsequent years. In 2005, employees at Bielefeld agreed to longer working hours as a financial contribution towards safeguarding jobs at the site.
09.11.2007 Plasteurope.com [209454]
Published on 09.11.2007
German version of this article...