Advanced tube bending experts combine sales efforts to create new international force in the metalworking machinery market

Scarborough, UK and Simonswald, Germany, September 4, 2012 --- Two of the world's most innovative manufacturers of tube bending machines, Unison and Rosenberger, have entered into a joint sales and marketing venture.

The joint venture greatly extends each company's product range and application expertise, and the international reach of their sales and support networks. Their combined product ranges undoubtedly provide manufacturing organisations with the most extensive choice of all-electric tube bending and processing automation available on the market today.

Both companies specialise in all-electric, servomotor-controlled, tube bending machinery. Rosenberger operates mainly in the smaller end of the market for tube diameters up to around 30 mm, and is particularly strong in the automotive sector. It also offers numerous all-electric end-forming machines, and has a strong automation engineering team to design and build turnkey work cells. The company sells mainly into the German-speaking region and in mainland Europe. 

Unison's tube bending machine range is broader, offering the capability of processing tube diameters up to 200+ mm. It is involved in a much wider range of applications, from aerospace and shipbuilding to furniture production and subcontract metalworking fabrication. Most of the company's sales activity is in English-speaking markets. 

Together, the two companies employ over 130 people and have annual sales approaching 20 million Euros. The organisations have a very good fit, providing each other with a skilled sales and network that not only extends their international presence, but also results in many new capabilities and application possibilities to the benefit of their customer bases. Immediately, the cooperation agreement will expand the global footprints of the organisations in Europe and the Americas. Over time, the companies hope to cooperate to improve penetration into Asia-Pacific markets. 

The CEO of Rosenberger, Gerhard Rosenberger said: "We have admired each other's products and work over many years, and believe that this relationship creates a strong synergy that will expand both the tube processing solutions we are able to offer to users, and the global support."

Alan Pickering of Unison added: "This partnership also has significant potential in terms of technology development. Both companies have innovation-oriented cultures, and the development possibilities opened up by our combined intellectual property and R&D resources in areas from machine control software to robotics and handling, is genuinely far-reaching."

Commenting on the joint venture, Unison directors Peter Wilkinson and Julian Kidger said: "We are delighted to have found such a business partner as Rosenberger and believe this agreement could be a defining moment in the histories of our companies. It gives us a platform to dramatically improve our offer to customers and drive our businesses forward much more rapidly than we could achieve by operating independently."

2012 has been a breakthrough year for Rosenberger and Unison, with the companies enjoying their most successful business year ever. Rosenberger is currently celebrating a significant multi-million Euro contract in the European automotive sector. Unison has been expanding rapidly in North American markets, thanks to a string of recent orders including a multi-million dollar contract in the shipbuilding sector. 

The combined all-electric tube bending machines available from Unison and Rosenberger following this agreement now spans tube diameters from 16 to 200 mm. The choice of machine configurations is exceptionally broad. It includes single bend head machines, ultra-versatile machines with left- and right-hand bending capability or a rotating head, twin-head machines for rapid fabrication of symmetrical parts, machines with integrated robotic handling arms, with integrated cutting heads, plus a very wide range of tube end formers and related finishing capabilities. 

Rosenberger is headquartered in Simonswald in South-West Germany, and has three further regional sales and support offices in Germany and France. Unison is headquartered in Scarborough, UK, with a sales and distribution network in the USA and Germany. 

More information: http://www.rosenbergerag.com, http://www.unisonltd.com