The Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group is the new owner of Frey AG Stans, a specialist in the field of cableway control systems that operates worldwide. This step is being taken as part of a succession plan: the company's approximately 100 staff are being taken on fully by the new owner, thereby ensuring that their substantial expertise is maintained.
Cableway specialists join forces. With retrospective effect from 1 April 2017, the worldwide specialist in cableway control systems Frey AG Stans is now a new member of the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group. This move is being made as part of the succession plan of Peter Frey, the sole shareholder of Frey Holding AG. Integration in the group is the logical continuation of a strategic partnership between the two companies that was initiated two years ago in the form of a technology cooperation to develop new products – which have since been successfully launched on the market.
Staff and expertise retained
The takeover by The Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group will change nothing for the approximately 100 staff of the tradition-steeped, Nidwalden-based Frey AG Stans and its premises in Stans-Oberdorf. All staff will be fully taken on by the new owner, thereby ensuring that the substantial expertise of Frey AG Stans is retained. The internationally renowned name and the Frey AG Stans brand will also remain in place. As a result, the company's enormous specialist expertise will continue to be available to the industrial base of Central Switzerland. Integration of Frey AG Stans in the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group is described as a win-win situation by both parties. However, Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group synergies will be tapped into in the areas of engineering, procurement, pre-production and customer service – wherever this is possible and worthwhile.
Takeover secures succession
The previous Chairman of the Board of Directors Peter Frey has handed over control of the Frey AG Stans board but continues to be involved with Frey Holding AG. Over the past decades, Peter Frey was very successful in establishing the company – originally founded by his father Fritz Frey – as a technology leader in the construction of control systems for cableways with a range of innovative products. The company celebrated its 50th anniversary one year ago, and Peter Frey now hands over a company that is very healthy in every respect. The takeover of Frey AG Stans as part of the succession plan makes sense in that both Doppelmayr/Garaventa and Frey AG Stans build facilities with a service life of twenty years or more, so this gives customers long-term reliability when it comes to service and maintenance. The new Chairman of the Board of Directors of Frey AG Stans is Thomas Pichler, Managing Director of Doppelmayr. The following also join the Board of Directors: Garaventa CEO István Szalai as a member and Hansruedi Schleiss, CEO of Frey AG Stans as a delegate. The Board of Management remains in the hands of Hansruedi Schleiss and his proven Frey AG Stans management team.
Collaboration with partners to continue as before
As part of the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group the Nidwalden-based company gains new access to worldwide sales channels and opportunities in connection with new areas of application such as urban cableway systems. This does not mean that the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group will only be using products made by Frey AG Stans in future, however. Customers will continue to decide which control system they would like: after all, it is still the case that every cableway facility is unique. For this reason, Doppelmayr and Garaventa will go on working with their existing partners as before and ensure that the latter are provided with optimum access to the relevant information and technologies at all times in the course of joint projects.
Frey subsidiary included in takeover
The one hundred per cent subsidiary Frey FUA AG with its premises in Markt Schwaben near Munich is also incorporated in the takeover process. Frey AG took over the activities of this German company more than ten years ago and has made a significant contribution to its further development. Thanks to the top-class quality and innovative technology of its products and services in the area of remote monitoring and signalling equipment for cableways, Frey FUA AG is now the leading global technology provider in this field. This area will continue with the same product strategy of remaining open to a diverse range of customers. By contrast, Frey Austria GmbH is an independent company and therefore not affected by the integration. Takeover of the Frey AG Stans share held by the previous management means that Frey Austria GmbH is now completely independent, and the company will therefore continue to operate separately from the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group.
Frey AG Stans
Frey AG Stans was founded by Fritz Frey in 1966 and specialised in the manufacture of cableway control systems from the beginning. In its anniversary year 2016, Frey AG Stans together with its subsidiary Frey FUA AG and the branch in Sion had a total workforce of some 100 staff. The Nidwalden-based company designs and builds as many as 40 cableway control systems per year. Whether aerial tramways, funicular railways, cable cars or chairlifts: each control system is adapted precisely to customer needs. For years now, Frey AG Stans has been the market leader in the planning and manufacture of cableway control systems, drives and remote monitoring systems (FUA) and is a competent and reliable partner to the manufacturers of cableways worldwide. Frey AG Stans has been certified according to ISO 9001 (quality management system) since 1994. The company has been part of the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group since 1 April 2017.
Garaventa AG, Rotkreuz
«Building cableways with enthusiasm – all over the world»: this is the motto of Garaventa AG, a Swiss company with its headquarters in Rotkreuz and branches in Goldau, Uetendorf, Sion and now in Stans. The company belongs to Doppelmayr and has become established within the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group as a Swiss centre of excellence with international outreach for cableways, funicular railways and goods cable lifts. Garaventa is also responsible for all cableway projects in Switzerland. All functions and expertise for these specialised transportation systems are made available worldwide from Switzerland by the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group. The Group has production sites as well as sales and services subsidiaries in more than 30 countries. Its technology is globally renowned and has been exported to over 80 countries. The Group employs some 2,670 staff worldwide. In 2015/16 the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group generated a turnover of EUR 834 million.
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