Strategic partnership begins

As part of the strategic partnership, around 800 sales and service employees from Sick with a focus on 'Cleaner Industries' in 42 countries are moving to Endress+Hauser. In the Endress+Hauser Sales Centers, they sell product solutions in the field of analytical measurement technology and gas flow measurement to process customers worldwide. The product portfolio for process automation is available at www.endress.com.

Joint venture for development and production

The strategic partnership also includes the operation of a joint venture. This is intended to strengthen and further expand the range of process solutions for decarbonization. 'Endress+Hauser Sick GmbH+Co. KG' develops and produces product solutions for analytical measurement technology and gas flow measurement with around 730 employees from the former Sick 'Cleaner Industries' business unit at several German locations. The joint venture will work closely with Endress+Hauser's product centers to drive product innovation and meet changing market demands. As part of the partnership, the product solutions manufactured there will be distributed by Endress+Hauser with immediate effect. Sick and Endress+Hauser will each hold a 50% stake in the joint venture from March 1, 2025.

Seamless transfer of business

Hundreds of employees from both companies have spent the past few months preparing for the smooth transition of the business. The sales and service teams for gas measurement technology at Endress+Hauser are now in place; endress.com reflects the expanded range of products, solutions and services. As of January 1, 2025, Endress+Hauser will exclusively market Sick's gas analysis and flow measurement technology worldwide. In China, the transition will not take place until March 1, 2025 for technical reasons. In Turkey and Saudi Arabia, sales and service will be transferred to Endress+Hauser during the first quarter.

More successful together than alone

Dr. Peter Selders, CEO of the Endress+Hauser Group based in Reinach near Basel, Switzerland. © Endress+Hauser

"We complement each other perfectly in this partnership," says Dr. Peter Selders, CEO of the Endress+Hauser Group. "It creates new opportunities for growth and development, especially with a view to the sustainable transformation of the process industry. By joining forces, we offer our customers added value. Our joint efforts will make us faster and ultimately more successful than if we were to go it alone. That's why, in this case, one and one makes more than two."

Dr. Mats Gökstorp, Chairman of the Executive Board of SICK AG, based in Waldkirch near Freiburg in southern Baden. © Sick

"We are delighted that the strategic partnership for process automation is now starting. Together, we can support customers worldwide even better and lead them into a sustainable future with leading technology solutions. We are convinced that the transformation of the process industry offers enormous opportunities for growth and development, which we will make the most of as strong partners," says Dr. Mats Gökstorp, CEO of Sick.

Factory and logistics automation not part of the partnership

Since the company was founded in 1946, Sick's core business has been in factory and logistics automation, where over 80% of sales are generated. This area remains unaffected by the strategic partnership in process automation; customers can be served even better thanks to the focus.

The existing product and solution portfolios of Sick and Endress+Hauser are complementary. Endress+Hauser is a leading global provider of measurement and automation technology for processes and laboratories. Sick is a solution provider for sensor-based applications for industrial applications.

As a family business, Sick and Endress+Hauser share similar values and a similar corporate culture. The German sensor manufacturer and the Swiss measurement and automation technology specialist signed a letter of intent for a strategic partnership in the fall of 2023 and concluded a cooperation agreement in the summer of 2024.

The two companies have already worked together successfully on a number of orders, projects and customers in the past. The gas analyzers and flow meters are primarily used in waste incineration plants, power, steel and cement plants, in the oil and gas industry, in chemical and petrochemical plants and in shipbuilding. There they are of fundamental importance for tasks such as emission measurement in flue gas cleaning or the flow measurement of natural gas and hydrogen.