Accuride Corporation completed its acquisition of Mefro Wheels GmbH, a rival manufacturer of steel wheels for passenger cars, light vehicles, and commercial vehicles it agreed to buy about one year ago. Mefro Wheels operates three plants in Germany, two in Russia, and one each in China, France, and Turkey. The closing follows completion of the European merger-clearance process, according to Evansville, IN-based Accuride.
No cost was disclosed for the transaction between two privately held firms.
“Acquiring Mefro Wheels transforms Accuride into a worldwide industry leader, strongly positioned to supply wheel-end system solutions to the global automotive and commercial vehicle industries,” stated president and CEO Rick Dauch.
The addition of Mefro Wheels doubles the size of Accuride’s commercial-vehicle wheel and wheel-end components business, with 16 manufacturing and assembly plants in eight countries, estimated revenues of $1.2 billion, and 5,000 employees.
Mefro Wheels produces about 20 million wheels annually for light vehicles; 3.5 million wheels for trucks and truck-trailers; and 2 million wheels for tractors, construction, and agricultural machines.
Accuride produces cast steel wheels and wheel-end components through its Gunite division as well as Gianetti Ruote S.r.l., an Italian producer of steel wheels for trucks, buses, and trailers, and steel and alloy rims for motorcycles. Accuride also produces forged aluminum wheels.
“Combining our two businesses is a game-changing move that extends Accuride’s geographic reach and resources, and significantly builds our capacity to serve global OEM customers,” Dauch continued. “In addition to doubling our core wheel business, we gain immediate positions in the European automotive market and the global off-highway equipment segment, creating multiple paths to generate additional organic growth.”
Accuride said it would implement an integration strategy involving targeted capital investments and Lean manufacturing and quality processes “to shift its newly acquired facilities’ operational performance to world-class levels”. It also will pursue “profitable organic growth”, globally, in the new market segments it serves.
Mefro Wheels will rebrand as Accuride and become part of Accuride’s Wheels Europe and Asia business unit.