STUTTGART, Germany — The Bosch Group has completed the acquisitions of the Johnson Controls International residential and light commercial HVAC business and the Johnson Controls-Hitachi Air Conditioning joint venture.
The $8 billion (€7.4 billion) deal, subject to customary adjustments, was announced about a year ago and completed as scheduled on Thursday, a press release from Bosch said.
“With the largest acquisition in our company history, we are accelerating our growth, expanding our global footprint, and balancing our business by strengthening our energy and building technology. This makes Bosch more powerful and robust, in line with our corporate strategy 2030,” said Stefan Hartung, chairman of the Bosch board of management.
With the acquisitions, the Bosch Home Comfort division almost doubles in size to more than 25,000 associates and more than $8.6 billion (€8 billion) in sales. Bosch is thus significantly expanding its presence, especially in America and Asia, and becoming one of the largest suppliers in the market for heating, ventilation, and cooling of residential and small commercial buildings worldwide.
In the U.S., the deal means that approximately 3,400 former Johnson Controls employees now join Bosch, and Bosch adds two manufacturing sites, located in Norman, Oklahoma, and Wichita, Kansas.
“The entire HVAC industry is in a state of upheaval, and the market and technologies are changing. Bosch is systematically taking advantage of its opportunities and is now moving up to the champions league in the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning solutions business,” said Hartung.
With the new lineup, the Home Comfort division is planning to grow faster than the global HVAC market, the press release said.
“Bosch wants to be one of the leading companies in each of its industries by 2030 and is expanding its business with strategic investments in growth areas, among other things. Acquisitions are also part of the strategy,” said Christian Fischer, deputy chairman of the board, who is responsible for strategic growth initiatives and portfolio management. “The current acquisition perfectly complements our portfolio. We can now offer our customers the entire range of HVAC technologies — from a single source and worldwide.”
The acquisition also includes strategically important company investments and joint venture interests in, among other things, component manufacturers and sales partners. With its expanded product and brand portfolio, Home Comfort wants to better leverage the potential of its established sales channels and boost sales, the press release said.
In addition to Bosch and Buderus, the company’s brands now include York in the U.S. and Hitachi in Asia, as well as other strong local brands. The company is acquiring long-term licenses to use the brand names York and Hitachi. The global production network of Home Comfort grows from 17 to 33 plants as a result of the acquisition, while the number of development sites increases from 14 to 26.
As of Friday, the Home Comfort division has a new global executive board. Jan Brockmann, the executive management president of Home Comfort, is president of the organization and, at the same time, takes on the role of regional president for the Europe/Middle East/Africa region.
David Budzinski, previously president of residential and light commercial at Johnson Controls International and CEO of the Johnson Controls-Hitachi Air Conditioning joint venture, joined the division’s global executive board. He assumes responsibility for the Americas region and becomes deputy to Brockmann. Ulrich Lissmann, who also joined the global executive board, will be responsible for the Asia-Pacific region.
Nora Klug, previously general counsel of the Bosch Group, assumes the role of chief people and governance officer. As chief transformation officer, Oliver Koukal will take care of the integration of the acquired business, for which he has already been responsible as project manager. Current executive management team members Thomas Volz and Birte Luebbert will continue as members of the global executive board; Volz will be the CFO, while Luebbert will serve as COO.