Siemens has agreed to sell the automotive component supplier Mannesmann Sachs AG to ZF Friedrichshafen AG. Siemens is selling Mannesmann Sachs for an undisclosed sum less than two years after its joint acquisition, with Bosch, of Mannesmann AG’s engineering businesses.
Subject to agreement of the supervisory board of Atecs Mannesmann and approval by the anti-trust authorities, the shares in Mannesmann Sachs AG will be taken over by ZF Friedrichshafen AG on 1 October.
ZF said that the acquisition would ‘reinforce’ its position as one of the world’s largest automotive suppliers of transmission and chassis technology. Sales volume is expected to increase from Euro 6.5bn ($5.7bn) to Euro 8.6n ($7.6bn) and its workforce by more than 18,000 to about 55,000.
ZF’s recently appointed chairman and CEO, Dr Siegfried Goll, said: “Sachs is a renowned company and with its comprehensive know-how an excellent reinforcement in product segments relevant for ZF. As a competent partner of the international automobile industry, the ZF Group is reaching a new order of magnitude with this acquisition.” Mannesmann Sachs vice chairman Hermann Sigle said: “ZF and Sachs are a perfect match. Both companies are technology leaders, they have a similar tradition and their portfolios supplement each other in a meaningful way. This also ensures our long-term growth potential.” The deal includes the four Sachs divisions – powertrain, chassis, rubber-metal (Boge) and Sachs Handel (the trading business). The gas springs business, Stabilus GmbH, is not included. The powertrain division produces clutches, torque converters, e-drives and components for automated transmissions. In the chassis division, production includes shock absorbers and struts as well as chassis control systems.
