Tomkins buys industrial hydraulic fittings business

By Liz White, ERJ staff

London-Tomkins plc has bought hose fittings maker Eifeler Maschinenebau GmbH, a division of Heitag Beteiligung GmbH and will integrate the hydraulic hose fittings business into its Gates Fluid Power business.

EMB is “a world-class manufacturer of high-performance hydraulic tube fittings, adapters and accessories for a variety of industrial applications,” according to Tomkins' statement on the deal.

The company, headquartered in Euskirchen, Germany, has subsidiaries in Spain and China, and employs around 150 people. EMB has annual sales of around Euro 29 million and net operating assets of Euro 12.5 million. The transaction, subject to standard closing conditions including antitrust approval, should be finalised by 1 July 2005.

“This acquisition broadens our range of port-to-port solutions for the industrial markets, provides significant potential operational synergies and opens up new opportunities for Gates in Europe and China,” said Jim Nicol, chief executive of Tomkins plc, in a company statement.

EMB will benefit from opportunities, “through leveraging Gates' strong presence in the US and developing areas such as Brazil, China and India,” Nicol added. This transaction-which Tomkins did not release financial details on-is part of “Tomkins' strategy of developing its businesses in high-growth markets,” the Tomkins chief concluded.