Jagenberg AG Is New Küsters Shareholder

On and with effect from 1st August 2005, Jagenberg AG, Krefeld, acquired 100 percent of shares in the equally Krefeld-based Eduard Küsters Maschinenfabrik GmbH & Co. KG including all its subsidiaries. The search for a new, strong partner for the future positive development of the Küsters Group has therefore been completed successfully and according to plan. Due to a lot of common ground between the companies, both in their corporate philosophy and in the areas of products and services, the now enlarged group of companies will be able to provide new impetus for growth.

Common ground can be found in particular with Jagenberg’s associated company Kampf GmbH & Co.
KG Maschinenfabrik, based in Wiehl-Mühlen. Both Küsters and Kampf occupy leading positions in the
construction of machines and plants for producing and finishing sheet material. While Kampf
concentrates mainly on plastic and aluminium foils, Küsters targets the textile, nonwoven and paper
industries. There will be further advantages in mutual utilisation of all the sales and production
locations of both companies.

“In Jagenberg AG and its majority shareholder Kleinewefers Beteiligungs-GmbH (Krefeld) Küsters has
found an ideal partner which, as a medium-sized entrepreneur, understands our company tradition and is prepared to invest in further expansion of our leading market position”, says CEO Dr Erich W. Bröker, looking into the future positively. The former shareholders the Küsters family couldn’t agree more. They have let it be known that they believe the “Krefeld solution” to be an extraordinarily good combination of traditional entrepreneurial values and clear commitment to further growth.

By acquiring Küsters, Jagenberg took a substantial step towards realising their strategy of leading a
compatible group of medium-sized companies for process machine and plant building. Their capabilities in today’s highly competitive markets, particularly the important Asian ones, are thereby decisively strengthened and optimised. Stefan K. Kranzbühler, Chairman of Jagenberg AG, is more convinced than ever that this is the only way of protecting valuable jobs in Germany, i.e. of earning back their high costs in the markets of the world.

The acquisition of the Küsters Group is a decisive element for achieving a globally stable size in this very demanding field of work as well as a good balance between pronounced risks and adequate opportunities.

Press Release Courtesy Of Küsters