Onex buys KraussMaffei for €568m

Onex Corporation, the Toronto-based private equity firm, has confirmed it has agreed to acquire KraussMaffei, the German plastics machinery manufacturer, for €568m (£453m).

The global plastics industry had been awash with speculation for some time that a deal was imminent and a statement from Onex today confirmed the transaction, which it anticipates will close by 31 March next year, subject to customary conditions and regulatory approvals.

David Mansell, a managing director at Onex, said KraussMaffei was a “global leader in each of its three segments, with a decades-long reputation for technology and quality.

“We look forward to working with Jan Siebert and his management team to further build on the company’s market-leading position”.

KraussMaffei is the first European-based investment for Onex Partners III, a $4.7bn (£2.9bn) fund run by Onex which will inject $340m (£210m) into the business.

Onex is not unfamiliar with the global plastic market; as recently as last year it had exited and re-entered the sector, selling its stake in Husky Injection Molding Systems, and then turned around late in the year to acquire extrusion equipment supplier Davis-Standard.

In a statement KraussMaffei said it had made “successful steps to strengthen the business in its core markets as well as to expand its global presence in growing markets, particularly the Bric countries and Asia”.

Speaking about the Onex deal, Jan Siebert, KraussMaffei’s chief executive, said: “Building on our recent success, we see good opportunities to further grow the company.

“I am very pleased to be partnering with Onex given its track record and experience in our industry. I am looking forward to working with this experienced and successful company.”

Referring to KraussMaffei’s previous owners since 2006, private equity firm Madison Capital, Siebert said: “I would like to thank Madison Capital for a reliable and trustful partnership over the last six years.

“The firm supported our strategy and business activities successfully, especially throughout the worldwide crisis in 2008 and 2009”.

Madison Capital purchased KraussMaffei from another private equity firm, New York-based Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, in 2002. The terms of that deal were not disclosed.

KraussMaffei, which employs 4,000 people worldwide, posted revenues of around €1bn (£798m) in the year to 30 June, 2012.

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