Toulouse, France
June 18 -19, 2009

COMPIN GROUP: A New World-Renowned Shareholder

COMPIN Group announced on March 5, 2009, the acquisition of a majority stake of its capital by Barclays Private Equity France.

COMPIN Group was founded in 2005 by Marc Granger to become a leader in the interior fitting of railway cars and front-ends.

Originally financed by the LBO France investment fund, COMPIN, a designer and manufacturer of seats since 1902 and a European leader, was the first acquisition made via its holding. Thereafter, in accordance with its development plan for interior railway fittings, acquisitions followed one another.

This strong growth thereby allowed for the realisation of a truly global offering of interior fittings and front-ends, while demonstrating the group’s ability to meet local needs and be responsive in serving its customers both nationally and, most importantly, internationally.

Today, the deployment of this strategy continues according to the roadmap established in 2005.

After nearly four years of existence and pursuant to its standard business model, LBO France chose to carry out its shareholding acquisition while remaining, however, a minority shareholder.

In spite of an extremely unfavourable economic context, the business project attracted the interest of several investment funds, thanks to the suitability of its market and sectorial positioning, the visibility provided by its order book and the dynamism of the railway sector.

The organisational work conducted to provide the group with a management team able to face the challenges of a market that is progressing rapidly is another one of the Group’s key assets.

By choosing Barclays PE and supported by first-rate financial institutions, BNP Paribas, Société Générale, LCL, Banque Palatine, BESV and the Crédit Agricole group, Marc Granger has ensured the continuity of the plans in place that he is pursuing with his teams related to the implementation of solutions expected by the railway market, whether in terms of design and innovation, production capacities, or logistics and local services that are all of high quality, to meet the requirements of major customers.

Today’s European leader in interior fittings and front-ends for railway stock, COMPIN Group, supported by its new shareholder Barclays Private Equity, has new means available to confirm and grow its presence internationally and remain close to its customers, to improve its responsiveness and services, and to further develop its potential for product innovation.

A first step on the Chinese market

COMPIN Group, the European leader in railway interior fittings ( 114 M€ turn-over and 1025 employees), headed by Marc Granger, announced on Friday 26^th of  September, the creation of the Joint Venture Qingdao Compin Railway GRP. 

(12 M€ turn over in 2007 and 350 employees)

 The creation of a Joint Venture with a shareholding majority with the company Qingdao Railway GRP in China, signed in June 2008, has been made official on its booth at the INNOTRANS fair on September the 26^th 2008.

The company, now named QINGDAO COMPIN RAILWAY GRP, located at Qingdao is dealing with the main railway manufacturers in China for the engineering and the manufacturing of GRP assemblies for front ends, interiors and seats applications. Its customers are amongst others, SIFANG KAWASAKI, BSP SIFANG POWER, SATCO , CSR.

The company address all markets segments in the railway industry from urban to intercity applications.

For COMPIN group, the main purpose of this positioning is to address the Chinese market with the proper location, competences and reactivity level and also support our main customers for the delivering of the high speed trains programs. Indeed our European clients involved in China require us to support their activity locally with the usual standard of quality, production capacity and innovation level developed by COMPIN Group elsewhere.

For COMPIN Group, we are also unfolding the proximity strategy already implemented in Europe as Qingdao Compin Railway GRP is located a few miles away from BSP and SIFANG customers, being thus able to be extremely proactive both in terms of engineering and deliveries.

This strategy has been already implemented in Crespin on Bombardier Site as well as in Derby through the creation of COMPIN UK located within Bombardier Derby site (refer to our latest press release on the acquisition of assets of AVE Rail Products, may 2008).

This operation creates also some advantages in terms of purchases for COMPIN Group in particular for the composites parts of its activity gathered under the brand name COMPIN Technologies Composites. The industrial capabilities of the joint venture, with high pressure SMC press, will also enlarge its product offer.

COMPIN Group, announced on Tuesday, 6^th of May the setting up of a new activity in UK, COMPIN UK Ltd and the purchase of the majority of assets of the business of formerly know as “AVE Rail Products”.

This company is specialized in Interiors fittings such as luggage racks, lightings and ceilings for railway applications for new materials as well as for refurbishment projects. Moreover, this company owns an outstanding know-how in terms or drivers desks supplying almost all Electrostar and Turbostar materials of BOMBARDIER TRANSPORTATION UK. Lastly, COMPIN UK owns a workshop in the vicinity of Manchester producing phenolic based GRP parts for railway applications.

This deal strengthens the internationalization strategy of COMPIN Group, offering the proper localization and organization to support at best all its UK based customers. Moreover, its positioning within BOMBARDIER TRANSPORTATION production site, highlights its proximity strategy toward its railway builders key customers.

COMPIN Group is thus continuing, with this new subsidiary in UK, the strengthening of a competitive and comprehensive offer to large accounts in the railway industry: world leaders in the rail transportation market.

COMPIN Group announced on Wednesday 7^th December 2007 the acquisition, via its holding company, of EMC - Européenne de Matériaux Composites. EMC (turnover in 2006: €16M with a headcount of 150 people in France and 100 in Bulgaria) is a pioneer in the field of composite materials.

The company is recognised for its expertise internationally in the railway industry (front-ends of trains and parts for the interior trim of railway vehicles) and for public transport vehicles, building site vehicles and various other sectors.

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