Klaus Hofmann, chairman of Kion's hydraulics & components division.

Kion Group is establishing a separate hydraulics & components division to boost sales growth and create synergies between the Linde, Still and OM brands.

Linde Hydraulics, a division of Linde Materials Handling, is now part of the new Kion division. That means Linde Material Handling, like other OEMs, is now a customer of the new division.

The division's products include high-pressure hydraulic pumps and valves, electronic control units, complete drive shafts, counterbalances and casting components for hydraulics applications. It employs about 2,000 people in seven locations worldwide. The division's plants are in Europe.

Linde's hydrostatic drive technology is sourced from the division while "commodity" components, like counterbalances, will be supplied to the three Kion brands.

Kion spokesman Michael Hauger says half the division's sales come from external OEMs. OEM customers include the construction, forestry and farming equipment industries.

"The newly-created division achieves sales in the magnitude of a significant three digit million Euro figure."

Gordon Riske, Linde Material Handling CEO, says the company has "outstanding technological skills" in hydraulics and components.

"We intend to increase significantly the marketing of these skills outside the Kion Group. Our aim is to achieve substantial growth in sales over the next few years in the hydraulics and components business."

Kion estimates the world market for hydraulics and drive components to be worth EUR16 billion (USD23.5 billion) annually and says it is growing at an average long-term rate of about 8%.

Hauger will not comment on the group's market share and business targets but says establishing the division will be good for sales growth.

"Management of the division has full responsibility for its own sales and results. This creates a strong entrepreneurial thinking, which is prerequisite to improve and grow business."

Kion will "create synergies in the area of commodity components", improving co-operation between the Linde, Still and OM forklift brands.

"But the cooperation will not dilute the strong brand differentiation between the three brands, which produce trucks to fulfill different requirements," Hauger says.

Klaus Hofmann, a Linde Material Handling management board member, is chairman of the division's board. Hofmann will represent the division on Kion Group's executive committee. Karl-Heinz Birkner, Kion Group's chief of in-house consulting, is CFO.

Former Linde Material Handling CEO Stefan Rinck, who was responsible for hydraulics on Linde's management board, is leaving Kion Group. Christopher Kempermann, Bernward Welschof and Peter Kolb, who had management roles in the former Linde hydraulics division, now form the new division's management team with roles in marketing & sales, development and production respectively.