Schneider Electric, based in Rueil-Malmaison, France, the minority shareholder of Elau AG, based in Marktheidenfeld, Germany, announced on May 11 the acquisition of all outstanding shares of Elau. This acquisition is still subject to antitrust review.
According to the press release, Elau will leverage its identity and market leadership in packaging machinery automation to lead Schneider Electric’s global packaging business strategy. Elau will operate as an autonomous business unit with an approximately 25 percent annual growth target.
According to Patrik Hug, Elau executive vice president, international sales, “Joining forces with Schneider Electric gives our customers a complete solution with the staying power, the presence in growth markets and the breadth of peripheral products that our competitors cannot match.”
The Elau acquisition, according to Schneider Electric, supports three key aspects of the company’s strategy:
• acceleration of growth in the packaging original equipment manufacturer (OEM) machine market;
• widening of its offerings in the motion control field; and
• strengthening of its presence in the European and North American industrial automation market.
John Kowal, Elau global marketing manager, added that nothing should change for Elau or its customers. Elau will continue to maintain its offices and sales and application engineering functions.
Elau provides core technology that enables packaging machines to deliver the increased efficiency and flexibility demanded in the global packaging industry. Schneider Electric is a $12.77 billion company that supplies an extensive range of electrical devices to implement automation throughout the enterprise.
