RINGSPANN acquires drive shaft manufacturer Kempf Universal Cardan Shafts

RINGSPANN has taken over the German company Kempf Universal Cardan Shafts with effect from 1 September 2024. The Gersfeld-based manufacturer is regarded as a technology specialist in the field of drive shafts. The RINGSPANN Group is thus growing by another production site and is strengthening its international competitive position in the markets of the steel and paper industry as well as gas extraction.

Bad Homburg, September 2024. – In the field of freewheel technology, RINGSPANN has been the world market leader for decades. The company is also continuing to expand the range of its one-stop shop with great commitment in other product divisions of industrial drive technology. After acquiring the US coupling manufacturer AISCO in 2023, and also integrating numerous new series of industrial brakes into its portfolio, it is now announcing the next decision in its long-term growth strategy: With effect from September 1, 2024, RINGSPANN has taken over the medium-sized company Kempf Universal Cardan Shafts GmbH.

The Bad Homburg-based company is thus implementing three important projects at once: first, it is a big step closer to its goal of doubling its coupling sales by 2029. Secondly, with the integration of Kempf's product range, it is expanding its range to include numerous established series of heavy-duty drive shafts. In particular, it is thus strengthening its international market position as a supplier to plant manufacturers in the steel and paper industries as well as in gas extraction. And thirdly, with the production plant in Gersfeld, the RINGSPANN Group will have an additional production site in Germany and thus continue to focus on quality Made in Germany. "We can well imagine setting up a European competence and technology centre here in the future for the development, manufacture and supply of articulated, gear and steel belt couplings for use in the drive systems of heavy-duty applications," says RINGSPANN Managing Director Fabian Maurer.

New member in a strong group

This is a friendly takeover. Under its General Manager Jochen Helfrich, Kempf Universal Cardan Shafts – which emerged from Gebrüder Kempf GmbH, founded in 1963 – has been on a continuous growth course for a good four years. The company has a solid customer base and has a high level of vertical integration, especially in CNC metalworking and gearing technology. "However, we would soon reach our limits in sales, so that we will now benefit considerably from the internationality of the RINGSPANN Group and the integration into its modern sales structures. In addition, RINGSPANN’s know-how in the areas of process optimisation, information technology and marketing will decisively drive us going forward," says Jochen Helfrich.

The new member of the group will operate as RINGSPANN Kempf GmbH. The management of the company remains in the proven hands of General Manager Jochen Helfrich and his authorised signatories, Chief Designer Matthias Trabert and Purchasing Manager Alexander Walter. The 34-strong workforce will also be taken over in its entirety. "In this way, we retain the diverse skills, know-how and experience of our employees. This should also significantly accelerate all upcoming processes as part of the organisational and technical integration into the RINGSPANN Group," says Managing Director Fabian Maurer.

Attractive prospects

With the acquisition of Kempf Universal Cardan Shafts, RINGSPANN is also acquiring a site with over 24,000 square metres, which is currently only partly used for production and warehousing. This offers the company a lot of potential for further expanding the location into a hub for drive shaft technology in Europe. Apart from that, the significant expansion of the RINGSPANN one-stop shop with the pro-ducts of the Kempf range opens up numerous new perspectives for the compilation of customised system offers. These machine elements can often be combined with other components of the RINGSPANN portfolio to form delivery packages that can then be provided completely from a single source. ms