Home > DORMA acquires DSC to boost Kuwait operations » Kuwait Times Website

DORMA acquires DSC to boost Kuwait operations » Kuwait Times Website


KUWAIT: DORMA, the global market leader in premium access solutions and services, has announced the acquisition of Door Service Centre (DSC), its longstanding distributor in Kuwait. With the formal agreement in place, DORMA Kuwait has now been established as a shareholder entity with a fully fledged country office presence in charge of complete operational control of DORMA’s strategic business in the Kuwait region.As per the acquisition formalized in November, DORMA has acquired DSC’s automatic sales, maintenance and service and installation and Hardware business. “DSC will continue as a producer and supplier of steel and wood doors and remain as a key DORMA customer. the move will strengthen DORMA’s market position in the region and enable the company to roll out its extensive product portfolio spanning door hardware, glass, automatic, movable walls and security time access,” Ben Shaw, Regional Director of DORMA Gulf, told the Kuwait Times.DORMA Kuwait’s establishment reflects a strategic realignment and bolstering of DORMA’s existing sales channels in the country. “With this strategic acquisition, DORMA will now offer integrated solutions for all door technology needs of the customers covering the entire unique value delivery processes from project specifications to commissioning and technical support under a corporate brand,” added Shaw.DORMA’s products are present in Kuwait for more than 30 years. “For the last so many years, we were represented by the same company, the Door Service Centre co WLL (DSC). I am confident that DORMA Kuwait will be instrumental in strengthening DORMA’s position in a relatively steady Kuwaiti market and bring in rich, original experience and technical expertise to our customers,” he further said.the company works in many businesses much bigger than what was represented in Kuwait. So we thought that the best approach is to invest directly in Kuwait. after Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, Kuwait was next on the list. So we went for the acquisition. now we are also looking for extending our business in Kuwait with more products and services in addition to opening a new showroom and office within the next 12 months. but, our focus is more on service and maintenance,” added Shaw.According to Shaw, DORMA has rapidly increased its market share in the Middle East and over the past seven years and is a market leader in door controls and automatic business with a 35 percent share of the market in Kuwait. “DORMA is a world market leader in door controls and glass fittings and is a leading producer in the automatics, movable wall partitions, and security, access and emergency controls systems,” he noted.As most world manufacturers, DORMA also has a factory in China and Singapore. “To ensure the top quality products, all tools and products are tried in Germany. Also, in every factory we have specialists from Germany as we are very keen on ensuring our impeccable quality,” he further said. DORMA has some expansion plans in the Middle East. “Within the next 6-9 months, we plan to open an office each in Morocco, Egypt and Jordan.We see some political changes, but we look forward to positive changes. We haven’t seen much businesses in these countries though people know us and our products. but we want to be fully present in these countries. Because, we believe that there is a strategic market in the Middle East. W are also looking to do more acquisitions in the region. the business in the region is still growing,” he pointed out.looking at the Kuwaiti market as a vital hub for construction projects, DORMA looks forward to expanding the customer base here. “The objective of the new Kuwait office is to reinforce and leverage the growth opportunities with particular reference to client services and engagement. the Kuwait office reflects a strategic realignment and bolstering DORMA’s existing sales channels in the region to directly meet varying needs of customers effectively,” concluded Shaw.Ben Shaw joined the company as the managing director in 1997 and spearheaded the company’s operations from headquarters based in Dubai. During Ben’s 14-year stint with DORMA, the team has grown significantly from four to 253 people. Ben has over 28 years of experience and prior to joining DORMA he worked with Black & Decker Overseas AG as the sales director. under Ben’s leadership DORMA Gulf brought forward innovations which prompted further expansion across the region.DORMA is headquartered in Germany and operates through 71 wholly-owned entities in 47 countries. its multinational operation has a major production facilities in Europe, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Australia, North and South America. Last year, DORMA created an important milestone with the manufacture of its 100 millionth door closer and reinforced its position as the market leader in technology, performance, and reliability.the DORMA Group has significantly increased both sales and earnings. in the course of its 2010/11 financial year (June 30), the company’s consolidated net sales rose by 10.3 percent. after adjustment for acquisitions and , sales increased by 6.5 percent compared to the previous year.