Kilde Automation becomes part of the Bila Group
Consolidation: KILDE Automation becomes part of BILA Group
Automation company BILA Group A/S has evolved into Scandinavia's leading provider of production and logistics automation for industrial customers over the past few decades. The acquisition of KILDE Automation is part of this development. For over 50 years, KILDE Automation has been one of the country's leading machine builders and, since the 1990s, among the leading suppliers of automation solutions for the electronics, plastics, medical, and metal industries.
"We are proud and honored to have the opportunity to continue KILDE Automation. Stanny Kilde started the company back in 1970, and when I was young, he was in a completely different league than I could dream of in machine building," says Jan B. Sørensen, CEO of BILA Group.
Jan B. Sørensen emphasizes Stanny Kilde's qualities as a person and a brilliant machine builder. The acquisition involves BILA Group taking over 100% of the share capital from the management of KILDE Automation, SPAR VEST Fonden, and local investor Bjarne Vium. KILDE Automation, based in Skive just 30 km from BILA's headquarters on Mors, will continue as an independent entity under the new ownership.
"We want to maintain the strength and focus that lies in KILDE Automation continuing its development with all its skilled automation experts, supported by BILA Group and our other specialists in sister companies," points out Jan B. Sørensen.
Muscle for more development in Skive
KILDE Automation's director, Peter Friis, looks forward to continuing the company's development under the new ownership.
"KILDE Automation becomes part of a project that uses Danish know-how to create jobs, growth, and innovation. BILA Group's desire to build a strong player in a rapidly growing market and the willingness to build on KILDE's extensive competencies offer great opportunities for us to develop as a partner to the industry and as an attractive workplace in the local area," says Peter Friis.
The acquisition of KILDE Automation continues BILA Group's strategy of consolidating the automation industry, following the acquisition of other players in the industry, most recently PJM A/S, formerly Poul Johansen Maskiner.
"It has been a year since we took over PJM, which has continued as an independent entity with great success.
The big Danish industrial conglomerates are growing rapidly and acquiring competing conglomerates abroad. Therefore, it is important that we, as an automation partner, evolve to match the requirements of these conglomerates, both domestically and internationally. If we do not evolve, we risk that the Danish manufacturing industry chooses large foreign automation suppliers," says Johan Blach Petersen, Chairman of the Board at BILA Group.
Deep expertise in many industries
The individual companies in BILA Group specialize in automation tailored to different production forms and customer segments. For example, KILDE Automation currently possesses deep competence in the plastics and medical industries. KILDE will primarily serve customers in these segments. At the same time, BILA Group is developing best practices in all relevant areas such as project management, systematics in machine and solution development, software development, and more. The goal is to deliver the best and most competitive solutions to customers, have sufficient capacity, and offer international service.
BILA Group expects increased demand in the coming years, partly due to a certain investment drought during the Covid-19 years and partly because of the increased interest in reshoring production or nearby sourcing, where production is moved from Asia to Europe.
The fact that the deal takes place between highly specialized companies in the same industry creates real consolidation, equipping the entire BILA group to perform better internationally.
Stanny Kilde and Poul Johansen started an era in machine building with the companies KILDE Automation and PJM A/S, which is now famous among the leading companies in both Denmark and the rest of the world. "We want to build on that, so I am incredibly happy that it has succeeded and look forward to welcoming the employees of KILDE Automation to the BILA family. The association of our solution portfolios and technological competencies is a significant upgrade of the forces needed to expand not only our but also our customers' international success: The more skilled BILA Group becomes, the greater efficiency gains the industry also gets," says Jan B. Sørensen.