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Interview with Gerd Rosendahl, CEO of CIMOS d.d.

Highly sophisticated components for Europe’s cars

The automotive industry is still considered the driving force of the European economy, with leading car manufacturers realizing continuous growth. As a consequence, suppliers of me-chanical components and modules are also experiencing strong demand and sound sales vol-umes. CIMOS d.d. in Slovenia is one of the names closely related to the strong automotive industry, as the group and its subsidiaries supply turbo, powertrain and kinematics solutions to the main automotive producers like Ford, Volvo, PSA, BMW, Audi and VW, and their suppli-ers Honeywell, Bosch Mahle Turbo Systems, BorgWarner Turbo Systems and TRW.

CIMOS can draw on more than 40

years in the automotive business.

The company’s history started with

close cooperation with Citroën, for

which it manufactured components

and even assembled complete auto-

mobiles. 1972 marked an important

milestone in the company’s history,

as a restructuring process resulted

in a new company that was to focus

on manufacturing and exporting

automotive components, car as-

semblies and sub-assemblies. “Car

manufacturing stopped and gave

way to three new divisions: turbo,

powertrain and kinematics,” points

out CEO Gerd Rosendahl, who can

look back on many years in car

manufacturing before joining forces

with CIMOS. Mr. Rosendahl is a

familiar face in car manufacturing,

but decades ago he was a highly

successful handball player, playing

for the prestigious first division club

VFL Gummersbach. He even won

the world championship with the

German national team. After hav-

ing finished his sports career, Mr.

Rosendahl studied engineering and

started working in the automotive

business in 1983. “After having dif-

ferent top management responsibili-

ties in Europe, working more than

two years as a Managing Director

in the USA, it was quite a challenge

to take on a position with CIMOS,

but during 2015 and 2016 here,

we were able to implement a suc-

cessful restructuring that became

necessary after the crisis of the

years before,” says Mr. Rosendahl.

“We had to adjust the number

of employees, reduce plants and

overall costs, but we have managed

the process successfully and have

gained momentum ever since.” To-

CIMOS d.d.C. Marežganskega upora 2 6000 Koper Slovenia

+386 566 58100 +386 566 58250

info@cimos.eu www.cimos.eu

day, CIMOS employs 4,000 staff at

its Slovenian production plants and

additional production sites in Croa-

tia, Bosnia and Serbia. “We have

to deal with different mentalities. In

addition to our production sites in

Eastern Europe, we operate sales

companies in Germany and France.

R&D is mainly located at our Koper

headquarters in Slovenia,” says Mr.

Rosendahl.

Turbo is CIMOS’s largest busi-

ness unit, accounting for 50% of

the turnover, which amounted to

265 million EUR in 2016. “In car

engines of most leading manufac-

tures, you will find our turbo-related

parts,” adds Mr. Rosendahl.

CIMOS supplies turbo-compressor

housings, back plates, turbine

housings, central housings and noz-

zles. Its powertrain unit generates

another 30% of turnover. “Our inno-

vations aim to cut down CO2 emis-

sions. We realize this ambitious goal

by bringing solutions to the market

that excel in lower-weight materials,

lower friction between components

and materials with improved ther-

mal characteristics,” explains Mr.

Rosendahl. The third division within

the group focuses on kinematics,

contributing to increased safety lev-

els for both passenger and pedes-

trian. “We supply brake systems,

handbrake levers and hinges that

all help to provide a higher safety

level in road traffic,” points out Mr.

Rosendahl.

Every year, CIMOS produces 40 mil-

lion different components with an

excellent quality rate. “Even if our

production is located in different

countries, we guarantee the high-

est quality standards,” stresses Mr.

Rosendahl. “Low labor costs are an

additional advantage. We provide all

the necessary technology solutions

to produce highly sophisticated

products, which gives us a competi-

tive edge over competitors who only

offer one aspect of our complex

products.” CIMOS has worked hard

to offer solutions in close coopera-

tion with the customer. “Together

with our

customers, we

develop ideas which

we translate into products. The

customer appreciates our proactive

approach,” says Mr. Rosendahl. In

the coming years,

CIMOS aims to strengthen its fore-

front market position in Europe

and beyond. It will become part of

Palladio Automotive in Italy, which

will result in future expansion. CI-

MOS will establish itself as one of

the leading names especially in the

turbo and powertrain business. ❙

In addition to its four production plants in Slovenia, CIMOS operates sites in Croatia, Bosnia and Serbia

CIMOS uses the latest state-of-the-art machinery to meet the high quality standards of European car manufacturing

CIMOS can test the majority of products from its product portfolio using state-of-the-art and custom-designed testing equipment

CIMOS is a leading European provider of mechanical components and modules for the car industry, fo-cusing on turbo, powertrain and kinematics solutions

CIMOS’s parts are incorporated in almost every car engine of leading European manufacturers

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