• Active portfolio management under “Salzgitter AG 2030”
• Salzgitter Bauelemente GmbH to benefit from greater visibility in the new corporate group
• FALK aiming at German market entry through the acquisition

Salzgitter. / Ede (NL). FALK Bouwsystemen based in Ede in the Netherlands will be taking over Salzgitter Bauelemente GmbH (SZBE), effective January 1, 2023. The takeover has now been contractually concluded, and the employees in Salzgitter have already been informed in a staff meeting. The parties have agreed to treat the purchase price confidentially.

Buyer FALK Bouwsystemen is a family-run company with around 150 employees, and thus twice the size of SZBE. The company has focused on the construction of buildings in industry and agriculture for 15 years and ranks as market leader in the Netherlands. The company’s production volume in the sandwich elements segment totals five million square meters, approximately five times SZBE’s volume.

SZBE will continue to be managed as an independent GmbH by Kai Bohmbach, the current general manager.

As CEO Gunnar Groebler explains, commenting on the motivation for the sale: “This transaction is the perfect fit for our Salzgitter 2030 strategy under which we announced a more active portfolio management in line with the best owner principle. FALK’s takeover opens up considerably better strategic options for growth for SZBE and its employees compared with the former corporate group. I am delighted that the Falk Group has opted to rely on the skills and experience of Salzgitter Bauelemente’s employees to build up its own market position in Germany. We wish all parties involved every success.”

FALK Group states: “In acquiring Salzgitter Bauelemente we are aiming to orchestrate our own independent entry into the German market. To this end, we will be building on the existing know-how and endeavoring to expand the production volume at this location; similarly, the investment measures envisaged by management are to be progressed. We welcome the current workforce most warmly to the FALK group of companies and emphasize that the existing collective bargaining and company agreements will remain in place as before.”

SZBE General Manager Kai Bohmbach: “In the new corporate group, Salzgitter Bauelemente will benefit from greater visibility than before, which is also a reason for our positive assessment of the new arrangement. Similarly, FALK’s clear focus on the construction industry and the potential for cooperating in procuring material are advantageous.”

FALK and SZBE also derive mutual benefit from their respective technical specializations: FALK, for instance, has stated that it is the first company in the world to recycle sandwich elements, thereby reducing the environmental impact by around 40 %. SZBE, on the other hand, is already manufacturing sandwich elements from mineral wool to accommodate its customers’ fire protection requirements.

The Salzgitter site on the steelworks premises will be retained, and Salzgitter Flachstahl will continue to supply feedstock. Administrative operations are generally to be run decentrally. The business premises and the storage location will remain in the possession of Salzgitter Flachstahl and will be leased to the buyer for a minimum period of ten years, plus renewal options.

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