The shareholders of Halin Group, located at
Industrieterrein De Run in Veldhoven, the Netherlands, and
Connect Group (CONN), headquartered in Kampenhout, Belgium,
announce that they have reached agreement for Connect Group
to acquire 100 percent of the shares of Halin Group.
The transfer of the shares will take place in January
2012.
Halin Group consists of 4 companies: Halin Group BV, Halin
Electronics BV, Halin Industrial Solutions BV and Halin
Communication Technology BV. Halin Communication Technology
BV is not included in the takeover.
Just like Connect Group, Halin Group is an electronics -
mechatronics subcontractor, operating primarily on the
Dutch market. The Halin Group employs around 120
people at Veldhoven, Netherlands, and has an annual
turnover of around EUR 20 million. Major
references for Halin include Philips and Axon Digital
Design.
Martin Saris, CEO Halin: "We are very pleased to become part of Connect Group. Our stable customer group, our operational expertise in a number of fields and our ISO 13485 certificate for the medical sector will certainly deliver added value to Connect Group. On the other hand, the availability of production capacity in Eastern Europe and Connect Group's broader technology base will help us in further expanding our organization in the Netherlands. It is clear to us from our discussions with Connect Group management that combining our companies creates a win-win situation for both sides. This was very important for us in choosing whether to become part of Connect Group."
Luc Switten, CEO Connect Group: "Our position on the Dutch market is significantly strengthened by the integration of Halin into Connect Group. Halin has a strong name and position in the Dutch subcontracting market. Halin will be able to take full benefit of our production capacities in Romania and the Czech Republic which will improve Halin's competitiveness. We also see potential cost reductions in the medium term by integrating our activities."
The consolidated assets of Halin Group at the time of acquisition in January 2012 will amount to around EUR 7 million (against Connect Group's consolidated balance sheet total of EUR 87 million at 30/09/2011). The acquisition will be financed with bank debt. The total financial debts of Connect Group will increase as a result by EUR 5 million (working capital and financing of acquisition price) from EUR 34 million to EUR 39 million.