Bulk Distributor Jul/Aug 19 | Page 12

12 B ULK D ISTRIBUTOR Thielmann WEW rebrands Containers July/August 2019 T hielmann WEW is to be rebranded as the defense business line of Thielmann in September 2019. The business line will continue to be represented by a specialist defense team at its existing factory in Weitefeld, Germany, where it has been based for more than two decades. As part of the Thielmann company, the defense team will serve its new and existing military and expeditionary customers around the world with deployable fuel and water solutions for forward deployed operations. Since buying WEW some three years ago, Thielmann has focused on incorporating the former’s defense capabilities into its wider container portfolio, while bolstering the unit’s financial position and strengthening its market position with the signing of new contracts and development. Thielmann’s defense business line will continue to focus on tailored water and fuel containers for armed forces A major focus of the evolution has been the establishment of a strong team at Weitefeld. The business line is led by Falko Pfeuffer, head of defense, with the support of a knowledgeable team including Branislav Jurisic, deputy head of defense; Ulrich Bernhardt, chief representative government; and Daniel Jahn, head of project management. The team is supported by Tanya Collier-Jackson, proposal manager; and a team of specialist designers, engineers, technicians and production staff. The Weitefeld facility has also undergone significant investment and modernisation, with updated equipment and tooling to enable it to support its growing order book and provide integrated logistics services, while strengthening its capacity to innovate on new products to support its customers as they face the fuel and water logistics challenges of the coming decades. “We acquired WEW Container Systems GmbH in 2016 knowing that its water and fuel capabilities would perfectly fit with our goal: to become a true one-stop shop for each and every need within the container industry, supplying containers with storage capacity between five and 50,000 litres,” said Bernd Loeser, CEO of Thielmann. “With our Weitefeld team and upgraded facilities, Thielmann now has a specialist capacity to support military and expeditionary customers globally, providing durable mobile fuel and water logistic solutions that increase autonomy and minimise environmental impact.” “As a full business unit of Thielmann, we are looking forward to the next stage in our evolution as the market leader of tailored, modular water and fuel solutions for defense and expeditionary customers worldwide,” added Pfeuffer. “We have gone from strength to strength over the past three years and I am excited to lead the team into new market areas as we look to the future.” The team has already established a number of new partnerships as it looks to support its customers in new ways, including fully integrated and scalable fuel and water base camp infrastructure capabilities, last tactical mile support and the ‘containerisation of the forces’ re-deployable infrastructure necessary for temporary and remote bases. “We strive to innovate in these areas while continuing to support our existing customer base, which includes the German, US, British, Austrian, Lithuanian, Slovenian, Irish and Belgian armed forces, among others, with our mobile and re-deployable ‘drop and go’ water and fuel capabilities,” said Pfeuffer. www.thielmann.com Ermewa buys Raffles F rance’s Ermewa Group is consolidating its tank container leasing position by buying Singapore-headquartered Raffles Lease and its 14,000-plus tank containers. Raffles was previously owned by Hamburg logistics group Buss. With the transaction, Ermewa says it is confirming its ambition to grow in the tank leasing business. Already present in the market through its subsidiary Eurotainer, Ermewa had already in 2017 integrated the small portable tanks business following the sale of CCR’s IBC business to Hoyer Group, while last year it bought Taylor Minster Leasing (TML), a specialised owner-managed tank leasing company. Within the Ermewa Group, the tank fleet now stands at more than 60,000 units, nudging it just ahead of Exsif Worldwide as the largest tank lessor. www.ermewa.com Buying Raffles adds 14,000 tank containers to the Ermewa/Eurotainer fleet