Coesia SpA has acquired Sirius Machinery AB

Coesia SpA has acquired Sirius Machinery AB from the Swedish investment company Nordstjernan AB.

Founded in 1923 and based in Bologna, Italy, Coesia engages in the design, manufacture and sale of automated packing and packaging machinery, industrial process solutions, and precision gears. The company operates through three segments: advanced automated machinery and materials, industrial process solutions, and precision gears. It offers automated packing and packaging machinery for tobacco, food, cosmetics, pharmaceutical, nappy and consumer goods segments. Coesia had a turnover in 2007 of US$775 million and approximately 3,400 employees, with manufacturing facilities in Italy, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, USA and Brazil, and branches in 13 countries.

"With this acquisition of Sirius, Coesia has strengthened its position among the first packaging machinery business in the world and in particular in the sector of cosmetic industry," says Marco Casiraghi CEO of Coesia. "The excellent fit that exists between Sirius and Coesia will allow our group to better serve our clients in the cosmetic industry with complete and innovative packaging solutions supported by distinctive life-cycle service and support packages."

Sirius Machinery, through its subsidiaries, manufactures machines for the cosmetics, pharmaceutical, toiletries, chemical and food industries. Its products include tube filling and handling systems; packaging machinery systems and automated lines; automatic feeding and handling systems; and lipstick moulding machines and hot filling lines. The company was founded in 1987 and is based in Kalmar, Sweden. Sirius has manufacturing facilities in Sweden, France and China, a turnover in 2007 of US$90 million and approximately 500 employees.

Nordstjernan is a private equity and venture capital investment arm of Axel and Margaret Ax:son Johnson Foundation specializing in investments in mature, buy-outs, and add-on acquisitions. It is a family-controlled investment company. It seeks to invest in divestitures, small, mid-sized companies, and ownership successions during mature and turnaround stages. The firm focuses on publicly traded and privately held companies and developing listed and unlisted companies by contributing capital and expertise. Nordstjernan prefers to invest in the Nordic region consisting of Denmark, Sweden, Greenland, Norway and Iceland.

Oaklins' teams in Italy and Sweden identified potential targets and advised the buyer on this transaction.