Swedish holding company KAMIC Group has acquired, through its subsidiary ETAL (UK) Ltd., all the shares of Avon Magnetics Ltd. The deal bolsters the magnetics company portfolio of KAMIC, which also owns SIGA Electronics and Talema.
The sellers are John and Lynn Anderson. Avon Magnetics is a long-established British manufacturer of wound magnetic components such as transformers, inductors and coils. Most of its products are developed specifically for customer-unique applications. Operations are based at its production facility in Christchurch, Dorset on the English south coast.
Avon’s history goes back to the 1960s but the company has operated under its present name since 1992. Over the years the company has built up expertise and is certified according to AS9100 revision D and ISO9001:2015, which is reflected in the company’s position as a supplier to industries such as aerospace, defense and medical technology. There are about 50 employees and annual sales of approximately GBP 2.5 million. Following the acquisition, Avon Magnetics is part of KAMIC Group’s magnetics business area led by Dan Phelan.
“Avon Magnetics is a highly reputed player with strong skills in the design, development and production of wound magnetic components for use in customer-unique and safety critical applications. Avon Magnetics will therefore be a valuable addition to our current operations in the Magnetics business area,” says Fredrik Celsing, president and CEO of KAMIC Group.
The previous owner and Managing Director of Avon Magnetics, John Anderson, comments on the deal: “We are very pleased to have KAMIC Group as the new owner. We have a lot in common regarding technology and skills and complement each other in terms of customer base. As a member of the KAMIC family we will have access to a valuable network, support and tools which over time will benefit Avon Magnetics, our employees and our customers.”
A few months ago, in November, the group appointed Stefan Ruuth as sales manager for its global magnetics business area, reporting to ETAL leader Phelan, Ruuth is tasked with shaping a newly unified sales team across the business area’s three magnetic specialist companies.
The appointment marks a return to the business for Ruuth who previously worked at ETAL for 16 years, first as an engineer and then as sales manager before leaving in 2017 to join a large organization in the fan sector. At ETAL, he was instrumental in developing the company’s planar magnetics product line which is now well known in the market. He has a degree in Civil Engineering and a Masters in electronics.
“Stefan has an excellent record of building strong technical sales teams, maintaining and developing margins and driving growth that exceeds the market,” commented Phelan. “He really understands our sector and personifies the ethos of high quality and performance that underpins what we do. This is an exciting time for us and I’m looking forward to working with Stefan to maximise the new opportunities afforded by our two significant recent acquisitions (SIGA and Talema).”
“It really is a great time to be rejoining the company,” agreed Ruuth, who is based at KAMIC headquarters in Stockholm. “There is huge market demand at the moment, particularly in the renewable energy and vehicle electrification sectors. We have excellent products in these areas as well as direct representation in the world’s most significant economies. We’re anticipating lots more growth in the coming months.”
With five manufacturing sites in Europe and Asia, the group’s magnetics business area offers a comprehensive portfolio of magnetic components. While most are custom designed for specific applications, it also produces a range of standard components. Customers consist primarily of large industrial companies with manufacturing in several countries. Major customer segments include communication, renewable energy, charging systems aerospace and defense. KAMIC is a privately owned corporate group consisting of nearly 40 operating companies active in trade and manufacturing of technical products and services with operations in 14 countries in Europe, Asia and North America with annual sales of approximately SEK 3.4 billion.
