US Bearing Manufacturer Acquires European Company Specializing in Ceramic Bearing Technology
Chatsworth, CA - New Hampshire Ball Bearings, Inc., a leading bearing supplier to the aerospace, defense, dental, and medical markets, and subsidiary of Minebea Co., Ltd., has acquired all of the shares of CEROBEAR® GmbH, a preeminent manufacturer of innovative bearings featuring technologically advanced ceramics.
Present at the signing were Jens Wemhoener (left) and Gabriele Wemhoener (right), Managing Directors, CEROBEAR GmbH, and Dan Lemieux, Vice President of Business Development and Marketing, New Hampshire Ball Bearings, Inc. |
The two companies signed a Share Purchase Agreement on Wednesday, June 26, 2013 in Duesseldorf, Germany. This strategic acquisition provides significant competitive advantages to both companies. CEROBEAR gains access to the global manufacturing and marketing resources of NHBB and Minebea, enabling the company to rapidly expand its worldwide customer base in the aerospace, defense, and medical industries. By partnering with CEROBEAR, whose core strength is ceramic technology development, NHBB is now able to assist its aerospace customers with the adoption of ceramic bearing technology in a wider range of aircraft applications. Ceramic and hybrid ceramic bearing technology is gaining wider acceptance with aircraft and engine manufacturers as they continue their search for innovative materials and solutions that reduce weight and increase fuel efficiency.
As a result of the acquisition, CEROBEAR becomes a part of the NHBB/myonic Business Unit within the global manufacturing conglomerate, Minebea, and will operate as an independent subsidiary under NHBB. With the addition of CEROBEAR this month and myonic GmbH in 2009, the NHBB/myonic Business Unit now operates six manufacturing facilities in the US and Europe.
CEROBEAR GmbH specializes in the design, engineering and production of customized ceramic and hybrid ceramic ball and roller bearings for leading companies in the aerospace, defense, food and beverage packaging, fluid machinery, motor racing, and semiconductor manufacturing equipment industries. The company is located in Herzogenrath, Germany, where it operates a 21,500 sq ft manufacturing facility and employs more than one hundred highly skilled technical workers.
New Hampshire Ball Bearings, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of precision bearings and complex bearing assemblies for the global aerospace, defense, and medical markets. Its diverse product mix includes precision miniature and instrument ball bearings, large ball and roller bearings for aircraft engines, and specialized rod end and spherical bearings for diverse aircraft applications. NHBB is a subsidiary of Minebea, the world's leading vertically integrated manufacturer of miniature ball bearings and high-precision components for the telecommunications, aerospace, automotive, and electrical appliance industries.
