Plansee Group strengthens its position in North America

“The acquisition represents another step in our globalization strategy,” comments Michael Schwarzkopf, chairman of the Plansee Group’s executive board: “Electro-Graph enjoys an excellent position in the US market and has strong relationships with its customers. Moreover the company is well-known for its considerable expertise in the design, engineering and production of replacement parts and components for the semiconductor industry, specifically for use in processes such as ion implantation, sputtering and CVD coating.”

“We totally agree that Electro-Graph will have great potential for development as part of the Plansee Group” says Paul Hacker, chairman of Electro-Graph. And Michael Schwarzkopf adds: “The business has performed exceptionally well under its current management and we want to continue working with this proven team in the future.” The parties have agreed that the sale price will remain confidential.

Privately owned US company Electro-Graph was founded in 1979 by Paul and Jill Hacker who retired from operational business some years ago. Today Electro-Graph is run by an independent management team and employs 65 people, with projected sales for the current fiscal year of around 20 million dollars. The company’s headquarters are in Carlsbad, around 30 miles north of San Diego, and it also operates a production site in Guaymas, Mexico, some 400 miles south of San Diego.

Plansee High Performance Materials, a division of the Plansee Group, is the world’s leading manufacturer of refractory metal and composite material products. The Plansee Group holds 62 companies in 22 countries worldwide. Ignoring different shares of ownership, the Group generated worldwide sales of 1.3 billion euros in the 2005/06 fiscal year, and employed a total of 8,500 people.