KATEK and KONTRON join forces for future growth and expand their leading positions in the IoT and GreenTec sectors.
The listed companies KATEK SE and KONTRON AG want to jointly drive and accelerate their successful development in the future. To this end, KONTRON AG has concluded a share purchase agreement with PRIMEPULSE SE for the acquisition of its stake in KATEK SE of approximately 59.4 percent.
KATEK has written a success story, particularly in the last five years. The aim was and is to make the difference in the European electronics industry and contribute to the independence of key industries in Europe such as medical technology, electromobility, renewable energies/solar, mechanical engineering/robotics and aviation – especially in the important areas of electronics development, prototyping and production.
Both vision and driver is the unbroken trend of the “electronification of the world”, in which almost all devices become intelligent through electronics, use sensors to record information, process and store it and communicate with other devices and people via the so-called IoT (Internet of Things). At the same time, the proportion of value added by electronics, hardware and software continues to increase from year to year. Electronics is IoT and vice versa: this is the core driver of the KATEK business model.
This strategy has enabled KATEK to achieve above-average growth in the European electronics industry in recent years and to develop from a regional supplier into a globally active company with locations in the USA, Canada, Malaysia and Singapore. Today, KATEK is the electronics partner of choice for leading German and European SMEs and corporations and, with an annual turnover of more than three quarters of a billion euros and more than 3,200 employees, is one of the most important medium-sized players in the electronics industry in Europe. “This development is all the more remarkable in the context of the crises of recent years, which have led to supply bottlenecks and price increases. We were even able to use the situation to further expand our market share,” says KATEK CEO and co-founder Rainer Koppitz. In addition to the “Electronics” segment, KATEK has also successfully established a second segment, “Systems & Products”, and thus occupies a leading position in the European market for green technologies, primarily in the areas of solar/renewables and charging for electromobility. Â
Against this backdrop, the second phase of the efficiency strategy was defined and communicated in Q3 2023: KATEK now wants to translate the economies of scale it has achieved into sustainable profitability. As a result, all parties involved have come to the conclusion that the fastest and most promising way to implement this strategy is to join forces with KONTRON, a market leader in the IoT sector. The two companies complement each other very well. In addition, there has been an intensive partnership between the two companies for many years. KONTRON is currently one of KATEK’s three largest customers and may already become the largest customer this year. KATEK already has significant business with KONTRON in North America and Europe in industries such as aerospace/defense, medical and robotics. With KATEK as part of the KONTRON Group, synergies arise for both companies in many respects, for example through access to dedicated know-how for the expansion of the particularly valuable system and product business (High Value Electronics) in promising target markets that are characterized by special growth rates and prospects.
The new strategic partner KONTRON enables KATEK to continue its growth story both organically and through targeted acquisitions. Against the background of the successful track records in M&A projects of both companies, KATEK and KONTRON would like to pursue this path together in order to take advantage of the opportunities in the market. The previous anchor shareholder PRIMEPULSE SE supports this step, as it offers KATEK, its employees, shareholders and business partners the opportunity to continue the growth story, move successfully into the future and reach the next level of sustainable profitable growth.
Rainer Koppitz comments: “KATEK and KONTRON are two companies with the same convictions, the same language, the same DNA and the same entrepreneurial culture. I am convinced that Hannes Niederhauser, the CEO of KONTRON AG, will personally ensure a smooth integration of the two companies.” Rainer Koppitz will step down from the Management Board and leave the company on February 29, 2024, but will continue to be available in an advisory capacity, particularly in matters relating to post-merger integration and future M&A projects.
KATEK CFO Dr. Johannes Fues will be responsible for KONTRON’s new “GreenTec” division, which will include the eMobility/Charging and Renewables/Solar businesses of KATEK’s “Systems & Products” segment.
