GUELPH, Ont. — Linamar Corp. has agreed to buy a forged-metal business from Carolina Forge Co. and a majority stake in Seissenschmidt AG, which does a similar type of high-volume manufacturing in Germany, Hungary and the United States.
Linamar, which is one of Canadas largest autoparts manufacturers, has pursued these acquisitions because of the fit with its strategy of offering integrated metal forming/machined solutions to its customers in certain targeted products such as gears.
It says the CFC transaction is expected to close soon, without specifying a date, and the purchase of 66 per cent of Seissenschmidts equity is subject to further due diligence and regulatory approval.
The combined employee base of the two acquisitions is about 1,150 people and they generate about C$450 million in annual sales.
“We are very pleased with these results of months of work in developing our global forging strategy,” said Linda Hasenfratz, Linamar’s CEO, “CFC is well known and positioned in the North American marketThe capabilities of these talented employees greatly enhance our component and system expertise in key markets such as gears which will be an important driver in increasing market share. Gear manufacturing is a key strategy for Linamar and an integrated forged and machined product a key element in solidifying our global dominance in this highly opportunistic market.”
Linamar has four key divisions that design and produce highly engineered products used in engines, transmissions, and industrial equipment.
It employs about 18,000 people in North America, Europe and Asia and generated $3.6 billion of sales in 2013.
www.linamar.com
