Greenbriar buys Frauscher Sensor Technology

Greenbriar paid a sum of €90-100m for Frauscher, unquote" understands. The business was acquired in an MBO led by new CEO Michael Thiel. The deal is a succession solution, as the company's founder Josef Frauscher decided to move on to different projects. 

The buyout by the US firm comes as the company plans its expansion to North America. Greenbriar hopes its investment will accelerate the development of new technology such as the Frauscher Tracking Solutions system, which is based on distributed acoustic sensing technology.

Greenbriar typically invests between $75-150m per transaction. The GP currently invests from its third generation vehicle Greenbriar Equity Fund III, which closed on $1.1bn in June 2014.

Company
Founded in 1987 and based in Sankt Marienkirchen, Frauscher is a provider of wheel detection, axle-counting and tracking systems to the global railway signaling market.

The company provides systems based on inductive sensor technology and distributed acoustic sensing that enable railway operators to obtain information they need to run, monitor and protect their operational rail networks. The company operates eight subsidiaries across five continents and its products are installed in 50 countries.

Frauscher has 290 employees and a turnover of €52m, according to a source involved in the deal.

People
Greenbriar – Michael Weiss (managing director).
Frauscher – Michael Thiel (CEO).

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Buyouts
• DACH
• Technology
• Austria