Avnet buys German passive components distributor Betronik
By Colleen Taylor, Contributing Editor -- EDN, September 24, 2007
Arizona-based electronics distribution giant Avnet Inc. announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the Berlin, Germany-based passive components distributor Betronik GmbH.
Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed. Following anti-trust approval, Betronik and its French subsidiary DEL S.A. will be combined with Avnet's Europe-based business unit Avnet Time in Germany and France, respectively. The newly formed business will operate within Avnet Electronics Marketing EMEA under the Avnet Time brand.
According to Avnet, Betronik reported calendar year 2006 revenues of approximately $40 million. As a result of the merger, Ingeborg and Horst Mergener, managing directors and founders of Betronik, will lead the sales organizations in Germany reporting directly to Michael Danylow, the president of Avnet Time.
Betronik, which was founded in 1986, is an independent distribution organization in the German market for passive components. Betronik employs about 80 people in its logistics center in Berlin, and has seven sales offices across Germany and one in France.
"The acquisition of Betronik, like the Flint acquisition three months ago, is another great example of Avnet's commitment to invest in the European interconnect, passive and electromechanical (IP&E) market," Patrick Zammit, president of Avnet Electronics Marketing EMEA, said in a statement.
"Germany is by far the biggest marketplace in Europe for IP&E products," Avnet Time President Michael Danylow added in a statement. "Together with Betronik, we can grow to become a leading force in this critical region."
Indeed, the Betronik deal marks just the latest in a series of expansions Avnet has made into the European market over the past year. In November 2006, Avnet Time inked a pan-European distribution agreement with Germany-based company Weidmuller to add to its board level interconnect portfolio. Also in November, Avnet Memec bought ESCO Italiana a Monza, Italy-based semiconductor and embedded systems specialist distribution company. In addition, Japanese electronics maker NEC Corp. extended its semiconductor distribution agreement with Avnet Memec to encompass Italy, France, Spain, and Eastern European countries including Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
