Precitrame Machines SA and Kummer Frères SA, two companies operating in Tramelan, Switzerland, have issued a joint statement on their union. Precitrame Machines has acquired a 100% stake in the share capital of Kummer Frères. “The complementarity of the two companies in terms of skills and products, as well as their strong and long-standing local commitment, make this development an obvious choice,” said Olivier Voumard, CEO of Precitrame Machines. This initiative will strengthen Precitrame Machines and support its growth while guaranteeing the future of the skills, products and employees of Kummer Frères. An established and recognized name, the Kummer brand will continue to exist.
The incorporation of Kummer Frères SA by Precitrame Machines SA will facilitate positive benefits in a number of different areas in the short term. It is hoped that synergies can be quickly harnessed given the complementary skills, knowledge, specializations and products of the two companies, but also thanks to corporate cultures compatible with strong employee commitment to technical excellence and attention to detail. The joint destiny of the two companies guarantees a future for the specific expertise of Kummer Frères, championed by highly specialized employees who will keep their jobs in this process. Last but not least, the commitments made by both entities to train apprentices will be extended and increased by pooling their efforts.
The experience of Kummer Frères in turning, hard turning and very high-precision applications will allow Precitrame Machines to expand its wide range of technologies to meet the needs of Swiss and global markets.
In terms of products, the recent development by Kummer Frères of the K5 machine for 5-axis milling is particularly promising in relation to the overall vision of Precitrame Machines. The possibility of marketing a compact and innovative machine in an industrial, Swiss-made version will also support and expand the development efforts of the He-Arc engineering school in this area.
In addition to the current products it offers for high-volume manufacturing of micromechanical components, Precitrame Machines will now be able to offer Swiss manufacturing solutions that are flexible and resource- and energy-efficient for medium-volume production.
The specialist knowledge of Kummer Frères will therefore strengthen Precitrame Machines and be guaranteed a future through development of the latter’s activities. “The continuity of a hundred-year-old company, which trains apprentices and is situated in Tramelan – where it’s ideally located and has an efficient production facility – was an important factor in our industrial analysis of this initiative,” concluded Olivier Voumard, CEO of Precitrame Machines.
About Kummer Frères SA
Kummer Frères SA was founded in 1917 in Tramelan, Switzerland, in an area with a long tradition of manufacturing precision machine tools. Focusing on high-precision turning since 1954, the company has continued to develop machines compliant with the most stringent requirements. The expertise accumulated in this field, together with an ever-present determination to supply uncompromising machining solutions, make Kummer a recognised specialist in high-precision high-productivity turning. The company has gained a worldwide reputation, particularly in the field of hard turning, which allows extremely precise machining of hard parts, for example those made from hardened steel, without a subsequent grinding stage. For the past five years, Kummer has been working on the development of the K5, a small, highly compact and energy-efficient 5-axis machining unit that can be used for turning or milling depending on its configuration.
Key sectors of high-precision high-volume industries such as the automotive, consumer electronics, aviation, optics, textile and hydraulics fields have placed their trust in Kummer know-how for many years. The Kummer distribution network is present in most of the world’s industrialized countries, and a large proportion of the company’s production is exported. It currently employs around 80 people.
About Precitrame Machines SA
Precitrame Machines SA was established in 2001 as a result of the split between the Microtechnology and Machine divisions of PRECITRAME SA, itself founded in 1983. Precitrame Machines is located in Tramelan in the heart of the Jura region, an area with a reputation as a centre of microtechnology and high-precision engineering. In recent years, the company has become a world leader in high-precision transfer machines. Designed for large-volume production of microtechnology parts, its machines are a first choice for major producers in the watchmaking, automotive, electronics and medical fields. Precitrame Machines supplies its machines to most industrialized countries and provides on-site service through its subsidiaries.
Precitrame Machines also builds automated termination solutions mainly designed for the Swiss watchmaking industry. The company has around 260 employees who develop, manufacture and service its Swiss-made machines.