Baker McKenzie Switzerland - along with other Baker McKenzie offices - advised Datwyler in its acquisition of QSR Inc ("QSR"). Datwyler has signed on 6 April 2022 a contract to acquire the US company QSR from Q Holding and its private equity owner, 3i. The closing of the transaction is expected to take place in the course of the second quarter of 2022, subject to the fulfilment of customary conditions and approvals.
The planned acquisition of QSR will strategically expand Datwyler’s existing portfolio and geographic footprint as Datwyler will become a global leader in another attractive area of system-critical sealing components with this acquisition.
QSR develops and produces system-critical seals and components for electrical connectors for safeguarding connectivity in harsh environments. With five plants and supporting operations in the USA, Mexico and China, as well as 1’250 employees, QSR generated sales of USD 164 million (some CHF 150 million) and adjusted EBITDA of USD 44 million (some CHF 40 million) in 2021. QSR will be integrated as an independent connectors business unit into Datwyler’s Industrial Solutions business area, and will be immediately accretive to the business. The transaction values QSR at USD 625 million.
Datwyler is a leading provider of high-quality, system-critical elastomer components and has leading positions in attractive global markets such as healthcare, mobility, food & beverage and general industry. With more than 20 operating companies, sales in over 100 countries and close to 7’000 employees Datwyler, headquartered in Switzerland, generates annual sales of more than CHF 1’000 million. The company has been listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange since 1986 (security no. 3048677).
Baker McKenzie advised Datwyler on all the legal aspects of the transaction and served as the lead counsel for the deal. The international Baker McKenzie team was led by Alexander Fischer (partner, M&A, Zurich) together with Alexander Blaeser (partner, M&A, Zurich) and Matthias Trautmann (counsel, M&A, Zurich) and consisted of:
Baker McKenzie Switzerland: Boris Wenger (partner, Competition & Antitrust), Nadine Bosshard (associate, IP), Zarina Füglister (associate, M&A), Eva Kriechbaumer (associate, M&A), Sandra Marmy-Brändli (associate, IP), Meera Rolaz (associate, Antitrust), Vinzenz Sutter (associate, M&A) and Eric Schreiner (paralegal).
Baker McKenzie Austria, Germany and London: Phelim O'Doherty (partner London, M&A), Nicolas Kredel (partner Germany, Antitrust & Competition), Anita Lukaschek (counsel Austria, Competition), Florian Kotman (associate Germany, Antitrust & Competition) and Elliot Ryan (associate London).
Baker McKenzie Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong & FenXunlaw: Howard Wu (partner, M&A), Alexander Gong (partner, Real Estate), Grace Tso (partner, M&A), Zheng Zhou (partner, IP), Di Wu (associate, M&A), Frank Pan (senior counsel, Tax), Laura Liu (senior counsel, Antitrust), Xi Chen, Maggie Wang, Chen Cici, Tina Li, Julien Wang, Tammy Tang, Luis Zhang, Emma Chen, Lei Ye, Henry Chen, Joel Cheung, Alvin Li, Bertha Ho, Katherine Tong, Harrods Wong, Ken Ng and Vivian Choi.
Baker McKenzie North America: Michael J. Fieweger (partner, M&A), Thomas Hughes (partner, M&A), Kimberly Franko (partner, Employment & Compensation), Alison Stafford Powell (partner, Compliance & Investigations), Geoff Martin (partner, Compliance & Investigations), John Fedele (partner, Antitrust), Christopher Guldberg (partner, Employment & Compensation), Patricia McDonald (partner, Tax), Douglas Sanders (partner, Litigation), Brian Zurawski (partner, Transactional), Elizabeth Ebersole (partner, Employment), William Rowe (partner, M&A), Adam Aft (partner, M&A), Meghan Hamilton (associate, M&A), Brian Lee (associate, Banking & Finance), Matthew McCarthy (associate, Banking & Finance), Taylor Parker (associate, M&A), Rachel Gray (associate, M&A), Tariq Akeel (associate, M&A), Stephanie Onyekwere (associate, M&A), Jonathan Susko (associate, M&A), William Shields (associate, Litigation), Danielle Lawrence (associate, Employment & Compensation), Sarah Swain (associate, Real Estate) and Daniel Graulich (associate, Antitrust & Competition).
Baker McKenzie Latin America: Luis Amado-Cordova (partner, Antitrust & Competition), Carlos Vela-Treviño (partner, Technology and Communications), Lorenzo Ruiz de Velasco-Beam (partner, Banking & Finance), Alejandra Muriel-Vizcaino (associate, Banking & Finance), Daniel Villanueva-Plasencia (associate, IP), Herman Gutierrez-Penuelas (associate, M&A) and Eugenia Barrutia (associate, Employment & Compensation).