ZIMM Group GmbH takes over Schäfer Group

ZIMM-Group-Uebernahme_2

The Vorarlberg family company ZIMM Group GmbH takes over the German industry gear specialists C.H. Schäfer GmbH and Getriebe Schäfer GmbH together with the production site in Ankara. The plant in Ohorn near Dresden is conserved, the order and earnings situation should be improved through new management, strategy and restructuring.

There are signals of growth of the Europe-wide market leader for screw jacks, ZIMM GmbH in Millennium Park in Lustenau. Purchase agreements for the long-standing manufacturer of industrial gears, Schäfer Group with C.H. Schäfer Getriebe GmbH, Getriebe-Schäfer GmbH and Getriebe Schäfer Ankara A.S. were signed on 23 June 2020.

“We are very pleased to be able to offer our long-term partner and supplier Schäfer an equally solid and dynamic future perspective in ZIMM Group,” Gunther Zimmermann, CEO of ZIMM explains and continues: “The product range, the know-how of the employees and the machinery of the two combined companies complement each other perfectly. ZIMM’s strong sales network and marketing brings new opportunities for marketing of internationally valued industrial and special gear units from Ohorn.”

Schäfer becomes ZIMM Germany GmbH

In the following weeks, ZIMM Germany GmbH will realign the management with the current directors of ZIMM GmbH, Gunther Zimmermann, CEO and Akan Celik, MAS CFO and will introduce a sustainable strategy for further product marketing, in order to improve the order situation in the plant in Ohorn.

A restructuring plan has already been created and will be put in place in the months to come with the help of the business consultant Dr. Herbert Loos, who accompanies the takeover. In the course of this realignment, ZIMM Germany GmbH seeks a new plant manager in Ohorn near Dresden.

Schäfer – industrial gear since 1873

Carl Heinrich Schäfer founded the company almost 150 years ago. This was followed by sensational developments and patents for gear manufacturing. After expropriation by the GDR government in 1969, it was returned to the family Schäfer in 1991. The scope of delivery includes in particular planetary gears, pump transfer gears, spur gears and bevel gears up to a total mass of 12.5 tonnes. The high quality industrial and special gearboxes ensure the right drive to well-known and worldwide leading companies in steel and rolling mills, mining and shipping companies, crane systems, wind power plants, antenna systems, the food industry and many other applications.

Weiterer ProdAnother production site in Turkey

C.H. Schäfer also maintains a CNC production with an office and warehouse in Ankara and offers finished or pre-machined cast housings, turned and milled parts for machine and plant construction. With the purchase, this production site with 10 employees is now part of the ZIMM Group too and will continue to operate under the new name ZIMM Turkey A.S..

ZIMM – movement with precision

Screw jacks and screw jack systems from ZIMM are in demand wherever precise lifting and positioning of loads in machines and systems is required. The technology is based on electromechanical drives, which are increasingly being used as an efficient alternative to hydraulics.

ZIMM modular system therefore offers 14 sizes for loads between 2.5 and 1,000 KN (i.e. 250 kilogrammes to 100 tonnes lifting capacity) with typically short delivery times. The globally unique ZIMM modular system including online configurator saves designers valuable time and creates tried and tested solutions with over 7,000 possible combinations.

ZIMM was founded by Jürgen and Hannelore Zimmermann in 1977. With company handover to Gunther Zimmermann in 2012, ZIMM is today a typical, export-oriented Vorarlberg family business in the second generation.

ZIMM and Schäfer – customers get additional benefits

Customers benefit from the diverse range of transmissions offered by both companies and receive competent, technical advice on site from ZIMM’s worldwide sales and service network. The high level of vertical integration and many years of engineering experience now enable total solutions for special customer projects.

Number of employees and turnover

After the accomplished takeover, ZIMM Group GmbH thus employs with its subsidiaries ZIMM GmbH Lustenau (133 employees), ZIMM USA Inc. Chicago (1 employee), ZIMM Germany Ohorn (186 employees) and ZIMM Turkey A.S. Ankara (10 employees) 330 employees worldwide and with its international sales network it is represented in more than 42 countries worldwide. The total turnover rises to over € 40 million.

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