Publications

Financial and press releases

Bergisch Gladbach, 30 August 2024

INDUS makes new acquisition for its measuring and surveillance technology field

- DECKMA, a specialist for ship lighting and safety systems, to strengthen the Engineering segment
- Further growth and add-on acquisitions planned

Investment company INDUS Holding AG has added a new portfolio company to its Engineering segment: the stock exchange listed SME holding company has acquired 75% of the shares in DECKMA Decksmaschinen und Automation Vertriebsgesellschaft mbH, Rosengarten. As a system supplier of technical marine equipment, DECKMA specializes in lighting and fire alarm systems, corrosion protection technology, and automation solutions for ships. The medium-sized company employs 45 people and generates annual sales of around EUR 19 million. DECKMA supplies customers in the shipbuilding and offshore industries, such as manufacturers of cruise ships, merchant ships and large yachts. With the acquisition of DECKMA, INDUS also takes over a 33 percent stake in the British company NEXTCORR Ltd, a system supplier of anti-fouling and anti-corrosion products for ships. In keeping with the INDUS business model, the company has also secured an option to acquire the remaining 25% of the shares in DECKMA in 2026.

“Whether it’s the planning of lighting systems with dimmer and light scene controls, the project planning of safety-critical navigation or fire alarm systems or the control of electrical protective currents for the ship’s hull – lighting and safety technology in modern shipping requires highly specialized technical expertise,” says Axel Meyer, the INDUS Board member responsible for the Engineering segment. “This makes DECKMA an excellent fit for our technological focus on measuring and surveillance technology in the Engineering segment.”

The former sole shareholders of DECKMA, Petra Bölkow-Anderwald and Sven Torbeck, will remain in the company’s management team. “Since its foundation in 1974, DECKMA has developed from a pure trading company to a very successful system manufacturer with high engineering and project management competence,” says Petra Bölkow-Anderwald. “Now is the right time for us to drive the company’s further expansion together with a new, strong partner. In addition to expanding the already strong service business, we also want to enter new international markets.”

Axel Meyer: “Demand for service vessels and converter platforms for the construction and operation of offshore wind farms is growing worldwide. This is an additional stimulus for the already fast-growing marine equipment industry. There is also growth potential in the outfitting of naval vessels.” According to the trade association Verband Deutscher Maschinen- und Anlagenbau e. V. (VDMA), sales in the German shipbuilding and offshore supply industry rose by 5.8% to EUR 11 billion in 2023.

With the acquisition of DECKMA, INDUS has already made two first-tier acquisitions and two complementary additions to existing portfolio companies in the current financial year. “We are planning further additions in 2024,” says Dr. Johannes Schmidt, Chairman of the INDUS Group’s Board of Management. “We currently see attractive M&A targets, particularly in the areas of infrastructure networks and energy technology. But fluid technology, which we have already strengthened in recent years with the acquisition of FLACO and, most recently, COLSON, also remains interesting for us.”

Note:

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are based on the current views, expectations and assumptions of the management of INDUS Holding AG and comprise known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. INDUS Holding AG assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements

Axel Meyer

COO Engineering
Axel Meyer (German citizen, born 1968) has been a member of the INDUS Board of Management since October 2017.

Until joining INDUS, he held various management positions at Schuler AG, most recently as Managing Director of Schuler Pressen and Head of the Service Division of the Schuler Group, Goeppingen, Germany.

Previously, Axel Meyer worked as a member of the Board of Management of the international management consultancy IMAGIN Prof. Bochmann AG, Eppstein im Taunus, Germany. He started his professional career in the Schuler Group's Solid Forming Division, initially in global sales and later as Division Manager.

Axel Meyer studied industrial engineering in Germany and the USA and earned a Master of Mergers & Acquisitions (LL.M.) at the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management while working. 

Gudrun Degenhart

COO Materials Solutions
Gudrun Degenhart (German citizen, born 1970) has been a member of the Board of Management of INDUS since October 2023.

She has more than 20 years of experience in the management and development of portfolio companies in Europe, USA and the Asia-Pacific regions.

Before joining INDUS, Gudrun Degenhart was CEO for the German portfolio companies of the international service group ISS. She previously worked for the thyssenkrupp Group, including as CEO of the international business unit for special lifts and as CEO of Materials Western Europe and Asia-Pacific. She gained experience in medium-sized companies as a board member of the construction technology company Schöck.

A graduate in business administration, she began her career by building up the Central and Eastern European activities of the construction specialist Lindner Group. 

Dr. Jörn Großmann

COO Infrastructure
Dr. Jörn Großmann (German citizen, born 1968) has been a member of the INDUS Board of Management since January 2019.

Up until joining INDUS, he worked for the Dutch group Aalberts Industries, with his last position being the sole managing director of Impreglon, Lüneburg, Germany.

He previously held various positions at the Georgsmarienhütte Group, initially becoming managing director of Mannstaedt, Troisdorf, Germany and later managing director of GMH Edelstahl Service Center Burg and GMH Engineering. Before Dr. Großmann became the managing director of Buderus Feinguss, Moers, Germany, he worked as a development engineer and as a technical director for Doncasters Precision Castings, Bochum, Germany.

He studied material sciences and earned a doctorate in the field of natural sciences.

Dr. -Ing. Johannes Schmidt

CEO
Dr. -Ing. Johannes Schmidt (German citizen, born 1961) has been a member of the Board of Management of INDUS since January 2006. He has assumed the position of CEO since July 2018.

Dr. -Ing. Schmidt was previously the sole managing director of ebm-papst Landshut, Germany, a manufacturer of ventilation motors and fans. During his tenure there, his main achievements included advancing the development of new product platforms and the internationalization of production sites.

Dr. -Ing. Schmidt began his career at Richard Bergner, a manufacturer of electrical instruments from Schwabach, Germany. He initially led product development before rising to the position of managing director during his 12 years at the company.

Schmidt, who studied mathematics, gained an engineering doctorate in mechanics from the Technical University of Darmstadt. 

Rudolf Weichert

CFO
Rudolf Weichert (German citizen, born 1963) is the CFO of INDUS.

Before joining the INDUS Board of Management in June 2012, he was a Partner at KPMG for nine years. He spent three of these years in Detroit, Michigan, United States, where he worked mainly with companies in the engineering, and materials trading industries.

Mr. Weichert, who holds a masters degree in business administration, worked for KPMG for about 20 years, primarily in the firm’s Duesseldorf office, where he worked mainly with multinational manufacturing corporations.