Krones, the world’s market leader for beverage filling and packaging technology, has acquired a 26 % stake in Klug GmbH, a German company located in Teunz, Bavaria, which as a system supplier has since 1995 been supplying intralogistical solutions featuring software systems developed in-house.
In 2011 Klug GmbH achieved a turnover of about 25 million euros and is a profitable company with around 250 people on its payroll. Krones intends to upsize its stake in the medium term, with the aim of eventually acquiring a majority of the stock. This option has also been contractually guaranteed.
The price for the minority holding of 26 % is in the medium single-figure million-euros range. To coincide with its stock purchase, Krones has concluded a cooperation agreement with Klug and will in future be able to offer its clients full-coverage intralogistical solutions through its new partner.
In view of this alliance, Krones’ Executive Board has decided to discontinue during the course of the 2013 business year the firm’s own operations in the fields of material flow technology and intralogistics, in which the company employs about 70 people. Through the cooperative arrangements, Klug will continue to offer Krones’ clients holistically conceived solutions for their intralogistical operations.
With this strategic decision, Krones’ Executive Board plans to achieve a lasting increase to its consolidated earnings. Material Flow Technology / Intralogistics is part of the group’s Machine and Lines for Beverage Production / Process Technology Segment, whose share of Krones’ turnover totalled around 260 million euros in 2011, for a pretax result of minus 19.3 million euros.
Products and services relating to material flow technology and intralogistics came to about 16 million euros, around 6 % of the segment’s total turnover. Out of the segment’s losses, the operations that are now being repositioned accounted for a relatively high single-figure sum in millions of euros.
The agreement is still subject to approval by the German anti-trust regulators.
