Orlando Capital completed the acquisition of German thermoforming company Illig on Aug. 1.
Following the acquisition, Illig has updated its name from Illig Maschinenbau GmbH & Co. KG to Illig Packaging Solutions GmbH.
The company will continue its business in all sales regions worldwide under the Illig brand. The product portfolio of thermoforming and packaging machinery and services will be retained. Machines will continue to be assembled at Illig’s headquarters in Heilbronn, Germany, and at its Romanian plant in Sibiu, the company said in a statement.
Orlando Capital, an expert on medium-sized companies’ takeovers, has performed over 85 transactions in its 20-year history, with a maximum transaction volume of 200 million euros ($219 million). The investor imposed job cuts of 200 employees as a prerequisite of the takeover.
Illig said it is optimistic about the future as it sees demand for sustainable solutions increasing
"We will intensify our sales activities in the global markets again and strengthen our relationships with our customers,” the management team said in a statement. “At the same time, we need to make our processes and the supply chain at our headquarters in Heilbronn even more efficient in order to remain competitive in the long term. With the tailwind of a financially strong and experienced investor, we will be able to invest more in the development of new technologies and innovations. At the same time, we are focusing even more strongly on international growth and the further development of strategically important product areas and markets."
In addition to the acquisition, Orlando Capital has invested ‘significant’ cash resources to position Illig as a market leader in the long term, the company said. The acquisition was funded exclusively with equity capital and aims to achieve a very high equity ratio.
In the past few years, Illig battled high costs due to inflation, interest rates, and energy prices; the after-effects of the coronavirus pandemic; and the consequences of international conflicts, all of which weakened the company's financial situation.
The Illig Group operates eight service subsidiaries worldwide and has two production sites, one in Heilbronn, Germany, and one in Romania.