Terms of the transaction were not disclosed; the deal is expected to be formalized shortly after New Year’s.
The plant, located in Bretten, Germany, employs about 230 people.
BERU has achieved a significant TPMS market share in Europe, according to Ulrich Huelsbeck, Huf’s CEO.
“We are planning to expand this segment even further and will use synergies to our existing product range,” says Huelsbeck, noting that the two companies’ offerings “match quite well.”
Already required in the U.S., TPMS is likely to become mandatory for European vehicles by 2014, he says.
BorgWarner’s TPMS aspect was acquired in 2005 “as a small piece of the BERU diesel cold start and ignition systems” division. “While the tire pressure monitoring product technology has been continuously developed and meets the upcoming strict European standards, it departs from BorgWarner’s strong focus on powertrain technologies,” BorgWarner executives report. “This transaction is limited to the tire pressure monitoring business only and does not affect other BorgWarner products or technologies.”
Based on the original 2005 BERU purchase price, the company will incur a “book loss” on the sale of some $10 million to $15 million, according to BorgWarner officials.
Huf Electronics employs 5,500 people worldwide at 16 locations in Germany, the U.S., Mexico, Brazil, Great Britain, Portugal, Spain, Poland, Romania, China, India, Japan and Korea. It is headquartered in Velbert, Germany.
For more information, visit www.huf-group.com and www.borgwarner.com.
