Acquisition strengthens Lesjöfors’ position in Asia
28 July 2016
Lesjöfors AB has acquired the John While Group Inc, a Singaporean-based spring company with subsidiaries in China, Thailand and Singapore. The acquisition strengthens Lesjöfors’ position in Asia and expands its customer base in several emerging markets.
John While Group (JWG) specialises in the manufacturing of customised springs and its customers include companies in home electronics/white goods, as well as the engineering and automotive industries. Its largest markets are China, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia, which account for approximately 80% of sales – with customers including European and US companies with operations in Asia.
JWG conducts manufacturing operations in Singapore, China and Thailand. Its product range includes some 7,000 items. The company has 115 employees and reported revenues for 2015 corresponding to approximately SEK 70 million (€7.4 million).
“The combination of the operations that Lesjöfors has today in China – focusing mainly on pressings – and the JWG operation that concentrates on wire springs, will form a strong platform for servicing existing and new customers to the Lesj.fors and John While Group,” says Kjell-Arne Lindb.ck, president of the Lesj.fors Group. “The acquisition broadens the total capabilities of the Group in Asia and we can now support most of the needs of springs locally, which is a big strength for the future.”
For JWG this acquisition strengthens the operation by becoming part of a group of companies being specialist in the field of springs and pressings. This will enable access to technical support and benchmarking possibilities that will be of high value for the further development of the JWG companies. “I am very pleased to be able to place our company together with a specialist in its field and I am sure that this will be positive for all our customers and employees” says Rhonda Willson, previous owner of the group.
Over the years, Lesjöfors has conducted a number of acquisitions and established strong platforms in the Nordic region, other areas of Europe and North America. The acquisition of JWG strengthens the company’s position in Asia, a region with high market growth and competitive manufacturing costs. Following the acquisition, Lesjöfors has 24 production units in 12 countries. Lesjöfors will, together with JWG, strengthen the service and technical sales capabilities in Asia and offer existing and new customers the opportunity to have most of their need of springs and pressings locally supplied.
