Bernard Krone Holding

Bernard Krone Holding SE & Co. KG is an agricultural technology and commercial vehicle manufacturer based in Spelle in the Emsland district, Lower Saxony. The company acts as the parent company and corporate headquarters of the Krone Group. The Krone Group is wholly owned by the Krone family.

History

Founding and early years

In 1906, Bernhard Krone and his wife Anna Krone established a farm-based blacksmith shop for horseshoeing and repair work. Subsequently, Krone secured the distribution rights for Heinrich Lanz AG within the Emsland district and began to develop and market its own agricultural machinery. With the development of a patented animal-operated pasture trough, the company assumed its role as both distributor and manufacturer of agricultural equipment. Post-World War II, Krone started to produce tractor wagons. In 1963, a separate factory was built in Werlte for the production of trailers.

In the late 1950s, Bernard Krone I, the son of the company's founder, invented the Optimat manure spreader, which was intended to make agricultural field work easier.

Expansion in Germany and abroad

In 1963, the Bernard Krone company moved part of its agricultural machinery production to a 5-hectare industrial site in Werlte. The background to the company move was an order for the construction of 20 three-axle trailers. In the same year, the company commenced building its production halls and manufacturing agricultural machinery.

At the end of the 1960s, demand for Krone agricultural machinery decreased due to a diminishing number of farmers in Germany. In response to this shift, Bernard Krone II decided, together with his cousins Heinz and Walter Krone, to build truck trailers and semi-trailers for the commercial vehicle industry.Peitsmeier, Henning (5 February 2007): "Familienunternehmen sind erfolgreicher". ''Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung''.

After his father's death in 1970, Bernard Krone III took over, and the company started producing trailers and semi-trailers for transporting goods on the road."Krone setzt Fahrzeugproduktion aus". '' Ems Zeitung''. 25 Mai 2019. As sales and profits stagnated in the beginning of the 1980s, Krone hired external consulting firms to get to the bottom of the reason for the economic downturn. The consultants recommended separating the vehicle factory and machine factory divisions, whereupon the corporate divisions Fahrzeugwerk Bernard Krone GmbH & Co. KG (Krone Commercial Vehicle SE) in Werlte and Maschinenfabrik Bernard Krone GmbH & Co. KG (Krone Agriculture SE) in Spelle were founded. Krone also received a recommendation to purchase as many components and services as possible from external suppliers. As a result, Krone handed over the production of chassis for truck trailers and semi-trailers to suppliers. Since 1980, Metallbau Schmees GmbH in Lower Saxony has been Krone's supplier for assemblies, main beams and chassis as well as several individual parts. Metallbau Schmees delivers 80 percent of the pieces produced to the Krone factory in Werlte. In addition to German companies, Krone works with suppliers from Slovakia.Schäfer, Waldemar (7 Mai 2003): "Krone setzt auf regionale Zulieferer". ''Handelsblatt''.

Brüggen Oberflächen- und Systemlieferant GmbH began working for Krone in 1984. By 2003, 95 percent of the company's orders came from Krone. In addition to coating chassis, Brüggen builds rear portals and front walls for Krone.

In the 1999 financial year, Krone Holding generated a revenue of DM 231 million.

Acquisitions and realignment

In 2007, Bernard Krone, the fourth generation of the family, joined the company's management.

In 2007, Krone began building a new assembly plant including a paint shop in Istanbul for €30 million, to produce agricultural machinery and trailers. In the 2006/07 financial year, Krone generated a revenue of €1.2 billion.

Until July 31, 2011, the Krone Group was organizationally divided into three areas: commercial vehicles (Fahrzeugwerk Bernard Krone), agricultural technology (Maschinenfabrik Bernard Krone), and Bernard Krone agricultural technology sales and services (LVD). On August 1, 2011, the company's agricultural technology sales and services (LVD) was spun off from Bernard Krone Holding. The Krone family continues to own LVD.

From 2011 to 2014, the machine factory in Spelle was renovated for €40 million."Branche leidet, Krone glänzt". ''Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung''. 29 October 2015. In addition to a new technology center and a testing hall, a new logistics and training facility and a new assembly hall for forage harvesters were built.Pertz, Thomas (29 October 2015): "Krone investiert bis zu 50 Millionen in Werlte". '' Ems-Zeitung''."Krone-Gruppe erreicht fast 1,5 Milliarden Euro Umsatz". ''Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung''. 6 March 2014. In 2012, a production site for the commercial vehicle division was opened in Tire, Turkey,"Krone baut Trailer in der Türkei". '' Ems-Zeitung''. 1 December 2012. where Krone produces chassis for containers and trailers for the Turkish market as well as for export to North Africa and the Middle East. In the 2012 financial year, Krone generated a revenue of €1.4 billion.

In 2013, Krone took over the Dinklage based axle manufacturer Gigant. At the end of 2015, Krone put a new foam system for panel production into operation.Meier, Thorsten (10 February 2016): "Für Mitarbeiter ändert sich nichts: Trailer-Hochzeit von Brüggen und Krone in Lübtheen sorgt für Unruhe in Stadt/Gerüchte über Entlassungen seien falsch, so die Firma". ''Schweriner Volkszeitung

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