Chief Executive Officer of the Knorr-Bremse group Dr Jan Mrosik is to leave the company by mutual agreement on April 30. Chief Financial Officer Frank Markus Weber is to serve as CEO on an interim basis until a permanent successor is named.
Switzerland’s MFD Rail is to acquire up to 6 500 container wagons with a green loan arranged by Germany’s KfW IPEX-Bank. ABN AMRO Bank, Crédit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank, ING Bank, La Banque Postale and Siemens Bank will be providing more than €300m of the loan total of €400m.
Knorr-Bremse has begun using Aucotec’s Engineering Base platform to accelerate project processes at its Rail Vehicle Systems division, focusing on the project planning of brake systems and the creation of documentation. According to Knorr-Bremse, the EB cooperative platform will replace two systems that it currently uses, as it covers both the mechanical and the control technology aspects of systems engineering. EB is expected to improve cooperation between various departments, increase data quality and reduce interfaces and manual work. The platform’s central library can map the modularity of Knorr-Bremse’s brake systems.
Hungarian contract manufacturer Fortaco has ordered a set of PEMA HPS&TPS 3500 and HPS&TPS 7000 wagon headstock positioners and PEMA APSi 1500 and 3500 three-axis positioners from Pemamek of Finland, to automate its production processes. Pemamek says its welding positioners provide better ergonomics for welders and can boost productivity by 70%.
Maynard Group has acquired TDC, with the combined entity to offer branding, wayfinding and product design services for the transport and other sectors in Europe, the Middle East, India and Australasia.
Knorr-Bremse reports that its 2021 revenue grew 9% to €6·7bn thanks partly to increased market shares in North America. EBIT was €920m, up 13·1% year on year; EBIT margin rose 40 base points to 13·6%. The company said its order book stood at a record level of €5·6bn, and the outlook for 2022 was bullish, with revenue expected to be in the region of €6·8bn to €7·2bn, and operating EBIT margin between 12·5% and 14·0%. Knorr-Bremse said its Rail Vehicle Systems Division turned in a strong performance at year end, with revenue for the year as a whole remaining steady at €3·32bn, EBIT operating margin slightly down year on year at 18·1%, and an order book of €3·88bn.