German formwork specialist Peri has bought a majority stake in Kern Tunneltechnik, a tunnelling business based in Lugano, Switzerland.
The Kern Group has around 80 employees at three locations and is a major provider of secondary lining solutions for tunnelling projects. It produces in-situ concrete inner shells for the construction of tunnels using the mining method.
The Kern Group's main markets are in the DACH region - Germany, Austria and Switzerland – the UK and the US. In addition to the construction of special machines, Kern offers complete logistics solutions and engineering services for more complex construction projects with a high degree of engineering expertise.
A statement from Peri said that Kern will continue to operate as an independent unit within the Peri Group under its current management, brand and company name. All Kern employees will be taken over and all company locations will be retained.
“For many years, Peri has been one of the technical leader companies for formwork solutions in the field of standard and special tunnel projects. Both companies share the goal of rationalising customers' construction processes and thus making construction safer and more economical.”
Peri is purchasing the shares from the WALO Group, based in Zurich, Switzerland. “Kern and WALO will continue their successful co-operation in the field of further and new developments of construction and logistics machines with a strategic partnership in the future, said Reiner Kern, chief executive of Kern Tunneltechnik.
"The acquisition of Kern Tunneltechnik is an important step in broadening our engineering expertise in infrastructure construction," says Christian Schwörer, chief executive of Peri. "This brings together two strong partners who complement each other perfectly. With this merger, we are creating an international solution provider in tunnelling technology for our customers."
Peris is a family-owned company with headquarters in Weissenhorn, Germany. Turnover in 2022 was around €1.85 billion, making it one of the largest manufacturers and suppliers of formwork and scaffolding systems. It has around 9,100 employees and more than 160 warehouse locations in over 70 countries.
