Munters AB has signed a definitive agreement to acquire HB Group, an international company that specialises in customised hygienic climate control systems for the food and dairy industries.

The headquarters of HB Group (www.hbgroup.nl) are in Almelo, the Netherlands, along with sales and manufacturing. It also has a joint venture at Hrusky, in the Czech Republic, which is a manufacturing facility.

Munters is a global leader and premium partner in energy efficient air treatment solutions. Using innovative technologies, the group’s expert engineers create the perfect climate for customers in a wide range of industries, with the largest being the food, pharmaceutical and data centre sectors.

The new agreement combines the strength of Munters and HB Group by leveraging Munters’ large sales channel, software tools, service reach and operational excellence and HB Group’s application knowledge, product offering and customer base.

Scott Haynes, Munters president business area air treatment, said: “Munters and HB share a strong focus on critical industrial applications. Munters will be able to expand its successful systems product portfolio to include HB Group’s world class stainless steel hygienic systems, while HB Group’s customers will benefit from the vertical integration of Munters’ innovative energy efficient technologies.'

He added: “This, combined with expanding our European manufacturing and service footprint, will allow us to better serve the industry. We look forward to bringing together the two companies to meet the demands of the marketplace and grow closer to our customers.”

Eric Bonvanie, previous owner and managing director of HB Group, said: “Munters’ global service network will provide more local access for all our service needs and bring enormous additional potential for our solutions offering. Our existing customers will be pleased to hear that HB Group, as part of Munters, will be able to support them whenever and wherever they need.”