Vickers to Acquire Hydrokraft GmbH

Aeroquip-Vickers, Inc. (Maumee, Ohio) has announced that its Vickers, Inc. subsidiary signed an agreement to purchase Hydrokraft GmbH, a subsidiary of IWKA AG of Karlsruhe, Germany.

Hydrokraft manufactures high-pressure axial piston hydraulic pumps, motors and transmissions for applications in stationary industrial equipment, marine, mining, chemical processing, food processing and other markets.

"Hydrokraft's high-pressure piston technology and engineering resources are world-class and will significantly strengthen Vickers' capabilities in the growing European industrial market," said Darryl F. Allen, chairman, president and CEO of Aeroquip-Vickers.

"Vickers has marketed Hydrokraft products under a brand label agreement in Europe since 1983 and has supplied other companies in the IWKA group with hydraulic products for many years," said John H. Weber, executive vice president of Aeroquip-Vickers and president of Vickers, Inc. "This acquisition expands and strengthens the long-standing relationship between Vickers, Hydrokraft, and IWKA.

Hydrokraft, located in Goeppingen, Germany, was founded in 1936 as a division of Boehringer to manufacture hydrostatic drives and developed its first axial piston units in 1975. Boehringer, a major German machine tool manufacturer, and its subsidiary, Hydrokraft, were acquired by IWKA in 1987.

Aeroquip-Vickers, Inc. is two companies, Aeroquip Corporation and Vickers, Inc., worldwide manufacturers and distributors of engineered components and systems to the industrial, automotive and aerospace markets.