SHIBAURA MACHINE Enters MOU to Acquire LWB Steinl GmbH Shares, Paving Path for European Expansion

Elk Grove Village, IL – October 6, 2025 – SHIBAURA MACHINE Enters Memorandum of Understanding to Acquire LWB Steinl GmbH Shares, Paving Path for European Expansion.

• Strategic expansion of SHIBAURA MACHINE into German and European market
• LWB Steinl site in Altdorf (Germany) will become the headquarters and production hub in Europe.
• Both partners want to strengthen their technology and system expertise for fully automated production cells and to expand their high-quality product portfolio.

(Tokyo, Altdorf, October 1, 2025) Japanese machine manufacturer SHIBAURA MACHINE has signed a Memorandum of Understanding to acquire 80 percent of the shares in LWB Steinl GmbH. By combining their expertise in injection molding machines and automation, both partners aim to strengthen their technology and system competencies for fully automated production cells. To this end, the mechanical engineering and automation divisions will be separated from the Steinl Group and integrated into the partnership. Their sales networks also complement each other: SHIBAURA MACHINE will gain access to LWB’s European customer base, while LWB will benefit from SHIBAURA MACHINE’s established network in Asia and the United States. This expanded market access is expected to lay a foundation for long-term growth. All LWB Steinl employees will be retained, and Altdorf site (Germany) will remain operational as the European headquarters and production hub. SHIBAURA MACHINE has also secured the option to acquire the remaining 20 percent shares from the Steinl family in three years. Upon completion, the newly formed entity SHIBAURA MACHINE LWB GmbH would become a wholly owned subsidiary. Both parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.

SHIBAURA MACHINE: Strategic expansion into Europe and expansion of the product portfolio

“Our strong footprint in America and the Asia-Pacific region forms the foundation for our strategic expansion. Europe, especially Germany, plays a key role in our growth. To fulfill our strategy, we specifically sought out a German partner who shares our standards of precision and quality. We identified this partner in LWB Steinl. As a family-owned company, LWB Steinl embodies the values that also shape our Japanese corporate culture: trust, appreciation, and loyalty," says Dr. Georg Holzinger, Managing Executive Officer of SHIBAURA MACHINE and future CEO and President of SHIBAURA MACHINE LWB GmbH.

By acquiring a majority stake of the mechanical engineering and automation division, the company aims to expand its product portfolio of all-electric and hydraulic injection molding machines to include vertical injection molding machines and automation solutions. This strategic step will enable the company to offer customers new applications in the future: in addition to thermoplastics, it will also process rubber, silicone, and elastomers.

"Our global production footprint allows us to meet the diverse needs of customers worldwide. We now plan to expand it to include the Altdorf site in Germany as our European headquarters and production hub. We will leverage LWB Steinl’s State-of-the-Art technology, proven employee expertise, and well-structured delivery processes. This will strengthen our technology and system competence for fully automated production cells and enable us to offer customers in Europe market-compliant delivery times and competitive production costs, and compliance with European standards such as OPC UA and Euromap 77 and 82," adds Holzinger.

LWB Steinl: Better global market access and leveraging cost advantages

“The plastics and rubber industry is currently undergoing profound change: machines are increasingly becoming commodity products. To remain competitive, companies must now position themselves strategically, maintaining high product quality while achieving cost efficiency. With SHIBAURA MACINE we have found a strong partner who will help us to build a strong foundation - through more efficient manufacturing and expanded global sales presence," says Peter Steinl, Managing Director of LWB Steinl GmbH, who will continue to serve on the management board of the new company. Going forward, LWB-Steinl’s machines and systems will benefit from cost advantages in purchasing and production through SHIBAURA MACHINE’s global manufacturing network in Japan, China, and India. This includes a more favorable mix of unit and labor costs, as well as access to high-quality components such as injection units from its Japanese partner. In addition, SHIBAURA MACHINE’s global sales network also opens better access to important markets such as Asia and the United States. “Japanese companies enjoy a strong reputation in Germany – above all because of their technological know-how, their innovative strength, their sophisticated production and supply chain processes, and their progressive approach to digitalization. I am convinced that we can successfully leverage SHIBAURA MACHINE’s platform competence and expertise in the areas of IIoT, smart machines, and data science for our products,” says Steinl.

SHIBAURA MACHINE LWB: United Strength. Growing As One.

"The new company SHIBAURA MACHINE LWB GmbH will operate from a position of strength, focus on workforce stability, and aim for long-term growth. We will be able to offer plastics processors and injection molders sustainable added value: first-class technology and system expertise for fully automated production cells, comprehensive knowledge of processes, applications, and procedures, and a strong, loyal customer and service orientation. The SHIBAURA MACHINE and LWB brand names will remain unchanged," says Holzinger, looking ahead with confidence. He also sees positive long-term prospects for the employees. “Employment contracts will remain in place and there are no plans for job cuts or relocation. On the contrary: we are deliberately relying on the high level of expertise and experience of our employees in Altdorf to continue to serve our customers with the quality and precision that we as a Japanese machine manufacturer take for granted,” emphasizes Holzinger.

To underline the significance of its majority stake, SHIBAURA MACHINE will be exhibiting an automated production cell consisting of an LWB vertical injection molding machine and an industrial robot from SHIBAURA MACHINE’s THE SCARA series at K 2025 (Hall 15 / Booth B21).

Furthermore, SHIBAURA MACHINE will present its next-generation injection molding innovations: the EC-SXIII All-Electric series and the S-GenXt Hydraulic series. Featuring advanced processing capabilities, these machines set new benchmarks for performance and precision in plastics manufacturing. Enhancing this offering is a newly developed line of auxiliary equipment, providing plastics manufacturers with comprehensive, turnkey solutions for cost-effective and efficient production. Completing the ecosystem is the Industrial IoT platform ‘machiNetCloud,’ which enables smarter, connected, and more sustainable factory operations.