Bosch sees leading HVAC role with JCH purchase
24th July 2024
GERMANY: Bosch has described its €7.4bn acquisition of the Johnson Controls-Hitachi Air Conditioning (JCH) joint venture as the biggest transaction in the company’s history, doubling its Home Comfort business.
Commenting on yesterday’s announcement, Stefan Hartung, chairman of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH, called it “an important milestone in the systematic implementation” of the company’s strategy for 2030.
“We are dynamically pushing ahead with the strong development of Bosch, and will achieve a globally leading position in the promising HVAC market with this acquisition. In taking this step, moreover, we will strengthen our presence in the US and Asia and achieve a better balance among our business sectors.”
Together with JCH, the businesses Bosch intends to acquire generated sales revenue totalling roughly €4bn in 2023, and employs some 12,000 people worldwide. The transaction includes 16 manufacturing sites and 12 engineering locations in more than 30 countries.
“With this acquisition, Bosch will accelerate its growth and nearly double its sales revenue in the HVAC market to roughly €9bn,” claimed Christian Fischer, the deputy chairman of the board with responsibility for the acquisition. “Together with our future colleagues, we want to seize the huge opportunities offered by the market for the further growth of this new unit.”
Frank Meyer, the Bosch board member responsible for the Energy and Building Technology business sector, revealed: “It is Bosch’s aim to play an active part in shaping the innovative and growing market for energy and building technology, and to occupy a globally leading position.
“With this acquisition, we are improving our position, especially in air conditioning. In addition, we will be able to globally expand our heat-pump business and achieve greater economies of scale.”
The 14,600 associates of the existing Bosch Home Comfort Group generated sales of roughly €5bn in 2023. Following the transaction, the new unit will have a workforce of more than 26,000 and be able to benefit considerably from economies of scale and a complementary portfolio at the interface between heating and cooling.
Jan Brockmann, president of the Bosch Home Comfort Group, said: “Now is the right time for a bold step toward a global presence. Demand for air conditioning solutions is growing especially fast.”
In the US, for example, Bosch says it expects to see more than 50% growth by the end of the decade, and in Europe as well, strong growth of approximately 30% is forecast up to 2030.
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