MAN Roland Druckmaschinen AG, Offenbach, and Schneider Senator Verkaufs-GmbH & Co., Hamburg have reached an agreement under which the MAN Roland subsidiary company Maschinenbau Sprotze GmbH in Buchholz near Hamburg has been taken over by Schneider Senator on December 31, 2001. With this investment Schneider Senator, originally a company solely engaged in sales of paper cutting machines, is looking to unite engineering, production, sales and service in order to harness synergy effects. MAN Roland wishes to concentrate more on its core capabilities and this move will contribute to streamlining the company’s portfolio. With around 80 employees, Maschinenbau Sprotze mainly produces paper cutting machines and the accompanying peripheral equipment for Schneider Senator. Sprotze also designs and builds Gravity Die Casting Machines for customers all over the world. The company is one of the region’s largest employers so it can depend on its staff remaining highly committed to achieving corporate goals. Starting from the 1. January 2002 the enterprise is trading under the name of Senator Technology GmbH with head office in Sprotze, Niedersachsen. Hans-Eckart Joost (sales/marketing) and Harald Schlosser (production) are going to be Managing Directors of the new company. “A trend-setting decision” notices Hans-Eckart Joost, “now we are able to utilize all synergies from production, service and sales and offer an even better performance to our customers.” Besides the business field cutting technology with the products guillotines and peripheral equipment the company will continue and expand the business field casting machines (Gravity Die Casting Machines as well as peripheral devices for the handling of cores and cast parts) for non ferrous casting, operated so far by MBS themselves. “This step ensures the long-term viability of both companies” Harald Schlosser is pleased. “The direct responsibility for all divisions increases our impact in the market considerably.” For the year 2002 Senator Technology is planning a turnover of 14 million Euro. One substantial task will be the continuation of the development of its own sales network already begun in Europe and the USA as well as further optimization of the services provided. The graphic product-range is headed by the only fully hydraulic guillotines in the market, the Senator S-Line H series.