AL-KO GmbH

About AL-KO

AL-KO GmbH, headquartered in Kötz in Bavaria, was founded in 1931 by Alois Kober as a forge and locksmith's shop and is today an internationally active technology group with more than 2,600 employees at over 30 sites worldwide. The AL-KO Gardentech division manufactures motorized garden equipment such as lawn mowers, ride-on mowers, robotic mowers, hedge trimmers, chainsaws and pumps; lawn mower production takes place, among other locations, at the Austrian site in Obdach in Styria. The Automotive division comprises the production and processing of various metals as well as the manufacture of pressed parts, hinges and welded assemblies for automotive engineering, with production facilities in Eisenach, Treuenbrietzen and Stromberg. The Automotive division was created in 2017 through the acquisition of Mettec-Holding GmbH and Prinz Kinematics GmbH; since then, AL-KO has belonged to Primepulse SE. In 2022, the Airtech division was sold to Trane Technologies, and in 2023 the company changed its legal form to a GmbH. Revenue in 2019 was around 500 million euros.

Site

Kötz

Processes

Production and processing of pressed parts for automotive engineering, Production of welded assemblies for automotive engineering, Production of hinges for automotive engineering, Vehicle Engineering Development/Testing, Manufacture of garden equipment (lawn mowers, ride-on mowers, robotic mowers, hedge trimmers,, Metal processing, pressed parts, hinges and welded assemblies for automotive engineering

Founded

1931

Employees

2600

Industries

Garden technology, Automotive/automotive supply

1. 01

   Pressed parts production (forming)

2. 02

   Welded assemblies (joining)

3. 03

   Hinges (assembly)

4. 04

   Garden equipment manufacturing (Gardentech)

Locations

Inside the production

Processes & technical limits

History

1. 1931

   Founded by Alois Kober as a forge/locksmith's shop in Großkötz

2. 1952

   Start of development and series production of hand brake levers; subsequently production of lawn mowers, axles and frame chassis for caravans

3. 1958

   Founding of the first subsidiary; sons Herbert, Kurt and Willy Kober take on shared responsibility

4. 1961

   First international expansion: subsidiary in Austria

5. 1970

   Branches in England, France, Italy and Switzerland

6. 1975

   Entry into air technology

7. 1987

   Conversion into AL-KO KOBER AG on January 1

8. 2007

   Transition to the third generation on the executive board (Roland, Harald, Raymond, Stefan Kober)

9. 2013

   Conversion into a European SE: AL-KO KOBER SE; group worldwide with 4,000 employees, approx. €700 million revenue

10. 2014

    Acquisition of the chainsaw and garden equipment division of Solo Kleinmotoren GmbH

11. 2015/2016

    Merger of the Vehicle Engineering division with Dexter Axle to form DexKo Global; Roland and Harald Kober leave the executive board

12. 2017

    New Automotive division through the acquisition of Mettec-Holding GmbH and Prinz Kinematics GmbH; AL-KO becomes part of Primepulse SE

13. 2021

    Resolution to rename to AL-KO SE

14. 2022

    Sale of the Airtech division (AL-KO Therm, approx. 800 employees) to Trane Technologies as of November 1; the terms Gardentech and Airtech coined

15. 2023

    Change of legal form to AL-KO GmbH

16. k. A.

    Ningbo Daye Garden Machinery Co. Ltd successfully completes the acquisition of AL-KO Gardentech (news without year specification)