Riflebird-backed Piller Entgrattechnik acquired by SFO

The company was bought out of administration by the family office, a deal brokered by law firm Grub Brugger as the court-appointed administrator.

SFO specialises in the takeover and further development of mechanical and plant engineering companies that have development potential, according to a statement. The group includes the Nayak Group, SHW Machining Technology and SHW Werkzeugmaschinen, based in Aalen.

Piller filed for bankruptcy on 28 February 2020. After negotiations with customers, business operations stabilised despite the coronavirus. At the same time, the insolvency administrator pushed ahead with an investor process to put the company's financing back on a solid footing.

Previous funding
DZ Bank and WGZ Bank subsidiary VR Equitypartner took a majority stake in Piller Entgrattechnik alongside investment company Süd in April 2014.

In April 2018, VR Equitypartner and Süd Beteiligungen (SüdBG) sold their stake to Belgian investor Riflebird. The PE firm targets companies with sales of €20-200m in a range of B2B sectors across central and northern Europe with a focus on Benelux and Germany.

Company
Based in Ditzingen, Piller Entgrattechnik is a deburring specialist that generates an annual turnover of approximately €20m. Founded in 1995, it employs 105 employees at its headquarters and a further 15 at a site in Hungary.

People
SFO Gruppe – Wolfgang Schepp (managing partner).

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