Sjølund is one of the largest providers in the niche market for complex bent aluminium and steel components. At its headquarters in the Danish town of Sjølund and a production site in China, around 110 employees manufacture components that account for only a small proportion of customers’ material costs, but are often complex and relevant from a security perspective nevertheless. These components are always produced to meet the specific requirements of the individual customer and are distributed across the globe – also via a third location in the US. Sjølund also advises its customers on adapting products to reflect the manufacturing process (design for manufacturing). This approach has allowed the company to establish stable customer relationships and a strong market position. It generates a good half of its total revenues from the wind power industry, mainly with components for the nacelles of wind turbines. In the rail industry, Sjølund supplies train manufacturers with structural profiles and components for external cladding, for example for the front of the railcar, the window frames or the boarding area.

Sjølund’s sales markets, some of which have a low cyclical exposure, are expected to show significant growth over the next few years. This development will be driven by megatrends such as the use of renewable energy, global population growth and increasing urbanisation. This should allow Sjølund to achieve further growth and expand internationally – both through organic development and through acquisitions. The aim is to expand the company’s business with existing customers in high-growth markets such as China and the US. In the future, the Chinese production site should also produce components for wind power plants. At the moment, Sjølund generates around 35 percent of its revenues with German customers. The company also plans to achieve strategic development by restructuring its sales activities to focus more on the highly profitable mechanical engineering sector.

Sjølund acquired a company just a few months after the start of the investment, with which the company took possession of a production site in Eastern Europe: CUTform, an Estonian specialist for the processing and manufacture of high-quality steel and aluminium components, was acquired in September 2018. Revenues and earnings at Sjølund are expected to be lower than originally forecast due to project delays in 2018.

In the coming months, the management team will push ahead with the strategic and operational measures agreed at the start of investment. Moreover, the focus will be on integrating the acquired company CUTform.