Hexagon expands its European distribution

Hexagon acquires all outstanding shares in four companies; R&A Rost Vertriebs GmbH, R&A Rost Produktions GmbH, both in Austria, Geopro Kft. in Hungary, and Junglas GmbH in Germany.

The two Rost companies, headquartered in Vienna, are leading distributors and service providers for surveying and construction equipment in Austria. Geopro is a leading distributor for surveying and construction equipment in Hungary based in Budapest. Junglas is a German distributor for construction and machine control equipment located in Münster.

"Both Rost and Geopro are important elements in Hexagon's global growth strategy. We believe the economies in Central and Eastern Europe to continue to show accelerated growth over the next couple years. These two acquisitions constitute a solid foundation for Hexagon's market leadership and further expansion in the region", says Ola Rollén, CEO and President of Hexagon AB.

"The acquisition of Junglas will expand Hexagon's market presence in the rapidly growing market for machine control in Germany. Junglas will operate under the same business model as Scanlaser, a company that we acquired year 2006", says Ola Rollén.

The four companies will have a combined turnover of over 100 MSEK in 2007, which is about 60 MSEK excluding inter company sales. The companies have shown double digit sales growth over the last couple of years. Together Rost, Geopro and Junglas currently employ 40 people.

Rost and Junglas will be fully consolidated as of 1 October 2007, and Geopro will be consolidated as of 1 December 2007. All four companies will immediately contribute to Hexagon's earnings.