The venerable cutting equipment specialist filed for bankruptcy protection just over five months ago, after supply chain delays left it unable to complete orders for some of its products.
Yesterday (1 February), it was confirmed that Polar Mohr and Adolf Mohr were being acquired SOL Capital, which has taken over 100% of the shares and provided a “significant” capital injection.
All 300 employees have been retained.
The new name for the business is Polar Cutting Technologies.
Managing director Thomas Raab said he believed the fresh start would boost the group’s industry-leading position.
“With additional automation solutions that enable our customers to significantly increase productivity and support their competitiveness, we will continue to expand and consolidate our innovation leadership,” he stated.
"I would like to thank all employees, customers, suppliers and our sales and service partner Heidelberg, who supported us during the challenging phase of the protective shield procedure."
The SOL Capital takeover is a combined asset and share deal that also included Polar’s Chinese subsidiary.
While Polar’s HQ will remain in Hofheim am Taunus, in the run-up to the SOL agreement the business sold its circa 50,000sqm factory in Hofheim to a developer.
Polar said the sale paved the way for relocating to a new factory in the area “that meets today’s production requirements”.
Heidelberg will continue to provide worldwide sales and service for Polar products.
As well as guillotines for the printing and packaging industries, Polar is also the dominant supplier of machines for packaging frozen pizzas.
SOL Capital management specialises in investing in companies that are turnarounds, carve-outs or special situations. Its current fund includes investment from equity partners and the European Investment Fund.
Polar was founded in 1906 as the Adolf Mohr machine factory and grew from a regional supplier to the largest global supplier of high-speed cutters. The firm celebrated its 115th anniversary in 2021.
