Matthews International Corp. has announced that the company has closed on the previously announced acquisitions of German-based engineering firms, OLBRICH GmbH and R+S Automotive GmbH for EUR €43 million (approximately U.S. $45 million).
Headquartered in Bocholt, Germany, OLBRICH is a production and intelligent equipment manufacturer, specializing in purpose-built rotary processing equipment, including equipment used in the manufacturing of dry and wet electrodes for lithium-ion batteries uses in electric vehicles and components for hydrogen fuel cells and electrolyzers. The company also has additional strong positions in Specialty & Pharma, Packaging and Home & Décor.
R+S Automotive is a specialty engineering services provider of automation, plant and tooling concepts for automotive manufacturing companies around the world. The company plans to integrate OLBRICH and R+S Automotive with its Saueressig Engineering and Energy business, part of its Industrial Technologies segment focused on high-precision engineering for a broad range of industrial automation applications including high-tech custom energy solutions, surfaces, marking, and coding systems.
Joseph C. Bartolacci, president and CEO of Matthews International, stated, “We are extremely excited to acquire OLBRICH and R+S Automotive as part of our long-term strategy to offer an extended portfolio of purpose-built engineered equipment and services for the burgeoning electric vehicle and broader green energy market. Our combined capabilities offer innovative solutions to accelerate development of an end-to-end solution for dry-electrode battery production and other energy solutions. Together, our offering will have significant impact on the mass market adoption of electric vehicles and benefit the entire energy solutions industry. This strategic acquisition continues our investment in technologies and accelerates commercializing new innovations across multiple industrial automation applications.”
“Matthews is the right partner for our future,” said Bastian Kuhl, CEO of OLBRICH and R+S Automotive. “OLBRICH, like Matthews, is making great strides in helping to scale up the manufacturing of hydrogen fuel cell components. With OLBRICH’s recent order for a mass production line for gas diffusion layers (GDL), and Matthews’ strength in the field of bipolar plates, our combined portfolio is well positioned to create a market force not only as a supplier to OEMs but also as a key production partner across Energy, Specialty & Pharma, Packaging and Home Décor.”
With the acquisition of OLBRICH and R+S Automotive, Matthews International says it expands its global presence and solidifies itself as a key player in the energy solutions sector.
