For years, ALLIGATOR Ventilfabrik GmbH of Giengen has supported customers from the automotive and industrial sectors as a development and project partner with an all-round worry-free package of valve technology, as well as with production services. ALLIGATOR does a major part of its overall business with promising applications that are separate from the traditional tyre valve business.
In order to be able to concentrate more fully on growing technology niches, the company has, effective 2 September 2019, transferred its traditional tyre valve business to WEGMAN automotive GmbH, a market leader in wheel balance weights.
Transfer of the traditional tyre valve business to WEGMANN automotive
WEGMANN automotive, headquartered in Bavaria, will carry on the well-established brand name ALLIGATOR. Production will continue unchanged with the same personnel and management in the European production location. At the same time, ALLIGATOR Ventilfabrik GmbH will continue there with its own production. WEGMANN automotive GmbH has retained sales and development staff from Giengen and set up offices for the team in Heidenheim an der Brenz, near Giengen.
‘The high-quality products of ALLIGATOR are a perfect addition to our existing product range and by joining our two teams it will be possible for us to further increase customer satisfaction,’ says Felix Bode, Managing Director of WEGMANN automotive GmbH.
Acquisition of the tyre management system for commercial vehicles by TireCheck
Since 17 July 2019, the sens.it HD tyre management system for commercial vehicles has been incorporated into the product range of TireCheck. The Irish company established the subsidiary TireCheck GmbH for sens.it HD. This business will continue to operate with the entire sens.it HD team from ALLIGATOR in Heidenheim. ‘TireCheck has been a part of the development of sens.it HD since the beginning. The long-time partner is an international market leader for digitalisation of the tyre industry that knows and masters the demands of the market,’ says Josef Seidl, Managing Director of ALLIGATOR Ventilfabrik GmbH. The combination of sensors and hardware from ALLIGATOR with the extensive software offering of TireCheck enables even better and quicker service for the customers in this rapidly developing market.
ALLIGATOR invests in technologically sophisticated growth markets
In the future, ALLIGATOR will focus even more on its employees’ knowledge and experience with growing technology niches. ‘Valves are used in more than just automotive tyres. Manufacturers of environmentally-friendly vehicles with advanced exhaust gas catalytic converters already rely on special valves from ALLIGATOR,’ says Timo Oppold, Industrial Solutions Business Area Manager at ALLIGATOR.
The Giengen-based company’s business will also be concentrated on products that have a positive impact on the environmental compatibility of vehicles, valves and components for hydraulic and pneumatic components, as well as air suspension systems, special elastomer products, such as vibration dampers, components for tyre pressure monitoring systems in passenger vehicles and in the growing market for tyre pressure management in commercial vehicles, among other things.
A current investment of approximately one and a half million euro in a production facility in Giengen demonstrates ALLIGATOR’s firm belief that there is great potential in future business. The company will use the facility to manufacture products that make automotive tyres even more precise and environmentally-friendly.
‘Integration of the sold businesses into the product fields of the buyers makes for an ideal supplement to their offerings that can continue to grow and develop. ALLIGATOR concentrates even more on promising applications outside of the traditional tyre valve business. About 50 per cent of the company’s overall business is already in these areas. The necessity to make vehicles and machines more environmentally-friendly and ergonomic offers a variety of growth opportunities,’ says Renato Palaoro, head of automotive applications at ALLIGATOR.
