Argillon
| Argillon GmbH
|
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| legal form | GmbH |
| founding | 2002 |
| resolution | 2008 |
| Seat |
Redwitz , Germany
|
| management | Georg Weyer (CEO) |
| Number of employees | approx. 1450 ( SZ , 2008 ) |
| sales | EUR 175 million ( 2008 ) |
| Branch | Technical ceramics |
The Argillon was one of the world's leading manufacturers of technical ceramics .
Company history
The company's beginnings go back to the early 20th century. In 1913, Siemens-Schuckertwerke acquired what was then the Neuhaus porcelain factory in the Sonneberg district, where it produced technical porcelain for the energy supply. 1733 people were employed in Neuhaus in 1939. After the Second World War, the factory in Neuhaus was expropriated, which is why Siemens founded a new porcelain insulator factory in Redwitz in 1950.
In 2002, the branch of business was spun off from the Siemens group and sold as part of Demag Holding to the US financial investor Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR). Since then, the company has operated independently on the market as an independent group. The new company name Argillon was created as a modification of the Latin word ' argilla ' (clay).
In mid-2006, the company faced considerable challenges and could only be stabilized through major restructuring processes. With a capital increase and the implementation of the restructuring programs both in the production processes and on the customer and supplier side, the necessary improvements could be realized. In addition, it was necessary to conclude a restructuring collective agreement with IG Metall (additional work and loss of income for employees). Just a year later, Argillon was back on an economically stable course. While sales in the 2004/2005 financial year were still 82.3 million euros, they climbed to 113 million euros during the renovation year.
On February 6, 2008 Demag Holding sold Argillon to Johnson Matthey from Great Britain for 214 million euros.
Around 1450 employees, 750 of them in Germany, worked for the company worldwide in the business units of catalysts , isolators , piezo products and alumina. Development, production, sales and service were concentrated in Redwitz (Bavaria) in Upper Franconia , the largest company location and headquarters of the company. There were also subsidiaries for medium - voltage insulators in Jedlina-Zdrój (Poland) and high-voltage insulators in Turda (Romania), a sales and engineering location in Alpharetta / Georgia (USA) and a sales office in Shanghai (China).
In November 2008, the formerly six business areas were split up:
- Catalysts and Piezo, now Johnson Matthey Catalysts (Germany) GmbH
- Isolators and Alumina, now Lapp Insulators GmbH
Business areas
Under the umbrella term "Technical Ceramics", the company was finally divided into the following six business areas:
- Isolators
- Piezoceramic
- Alumina
- Catalysts for power plants
- Catalytic converters for heavy trucks
- Catalysts for plant construction