Railway supplier Huebner acquires bus specialist

Kassel, Germany - German automotive and industrial parts supplier Huebner Group has acquired Gummi-Welz GmbH & Co. KG (GWU Group), a supplier door sealing and safety systems for buses.

Based in Neu-Ulm, Germany, GWU has five production sites across Germany, Poland and Turkey where it manufactures finger protection profiles that work with light curtains as touchless safety systems.

The acquisition, announced in April, is part of Huebner’s mid-term strategy to become “the worldwide market leader” for door safety systems in railway and bus segments.

The move, according to Huebner, will also strengthen the company’s position the material solutions business segment.

Following the integration of the acquired businesses, GWU's two managing directors Tobias Lexhaller and Horst Grein will take on executive positions in the newly structured corporate group – with Lexhaller heading the business segment Huebner Material Solutions.

The new corporate group "is particularly interested in additional growth in the US market," where Huebner is currently building a new production plant.

"While Huebner is the leading company in the area of elastomer sealing systems for doors and windows for railway vehicles, GWU has established a similarly strong position in the bus industry,” said Huebner general manager Ingolf Cedra, responsible for the material solutions business segment.

GWU, he added, has strong customer relationships with the most prominent European bus producers.

The two companies, according to GWU managing director Tobias Lexhaller, have "almost no overlaps in the respective product portfolios or company locations."

"Both sides share the goal of technology leadership for sophisticated engineering solutions for elastomers," Lexhaller concluded.