Schaeffler is the market leader in functional surface technology in several market segments. Acquiring this highly innovative service provider will help strengthen Schaeffler’s core expertise in this technology of the future.

The start-up company SIA Naco Technologies was founded in Latvia’s capital in 2010 with the support of “Commercialization Reactor Riga”, an agency and marketing platform for science-based young businesses. Companies involved as investors and developers were Imprimatur Capital, ZGI Capital and Proks Capital. As just one example, the specialists from Latvia have developed what is currently the fastest process for physical vapor deposition (PVD). This technology will complement and further optimize Schaeffler’s high-tech vacuum facilities for PVD and plasma-based PACVD processes that are used in high-volume production. Naco currently has six employees.

Prof. Peter Gutzmer, Deputy CEO and CTO, regards this acquisition as a strategic addition to one of Schaeffler’s key competencies. “It underlines our claim to technology leadership in coating technology. Our experts are especially important in ensuring the implementation of value adding steps that are essential for quality, functions and costs for important products and components. By acquiring Naco, we have secured the experience and expertise of a scientist highly renowned in the scientific community, five highly-trained specialists and an innovative prototype PVD facility.” In addition to product and technology expertise, Schaeffler thus also expands its industrialization and value added competencies in surface technology, securing the entire knowledge about this key technology in-house.

For Dr. Yashar Musayev, Senior Vice President of the Competence Center Surface Technology, his new colleagues in Riga are an ideal addition in this field:

“Naco Technologies has been instrumental in promoting the development for particularly environmentally friendly and innovative PVD processes. With Professor Valery Mitin, the company has an internationally renowned expert at its helm. Going forward, we will be able to benefit exclusively from his experience and his team.” Prof. Mitin is the co-founder of this young company and has more than 40 years’ experience in research, development and production in the nano industry from his work at the “Moscow High Technology Science Research Institute of Non-organic Materials”. He was the world’s first designer of a PVD system. Seventy-one-year-old Prof. Mitin is looking forward to working with the specialists at Schaeffler: “I would like to contribute my knowledge and the results of our work at one of the most innovative and leading global companies for surface technology. Together we will be able to advance the development of new and even better coating systems and achieve a quantum leap for production methods.”

Schaeffler carries out coating at over 20 locations around the world in more than 50 modern coating machines using a range of methods and technologies, such as spraying and painting procedures as well as chemical and physical processes such as PVD/PACVD.