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There is a change at the top management level of MBT Climate, a specialist in the development and production of indoor climate systems: Senior Vice President and COO Alexander Kaiss is leaving the group at his own request to pursue new challenges outside MBT Climate.
Alexander Kaiss worked for the group for 28 years and held various management positions at group level as well as managing director of Kermi GmbH. Since the takeover of ARBONIA climate by the Midea Group in February 2025, he has been Senior Vice President and Chief Operations Officer (COO) of MBT Climate.

As Chief Operations Officer, Alexander Kaiss expanded ARBONIA climate's production facilities and positioned the operations division for the future. As CEO, he further developed the group's strategy and led ARBONIA climate very successfully through challenging market situations. By supporting the acquisition phase, he set the course for a successful future.

Stefano Bellò, President and CEO of MBT Climate, explains: “We deeply regret his decision and thank him for his trusting cooperation, his decades of exemplary commitment during which he contributed his professional and leadership skills, and for his strategic vision, with which he led ARBONIA climate, the Operations division, and MBT Climate on the path to success.”

Alexander Kaiß: “I would like to thank my employees for their dedication and support. Together, we have overcome many challenges and celebrated joint successes. I am grateful for the trust placed in me by my team, my colleagues and superiors, as well as our partners and customers. I am confident about the future of MBT Climate and wish you all continued success.”

Over the next few months, Alexander Kaiß will continue to perform his duties at MBT Climate and Kermi GmbH and prepare for an orderly handover to his successor.

Knut Bartsch, CFO of MBT Climate and long-standing Managing Director and CFO of the associated Kermi GmbH, is leaving the group to pursue new opportunities. The parting is consensual and based on mutual appreciation.

The background to this decision is the recent change in ownership, with which the group became part of the Midea Group. This is associated with a realignment of the strategic focus.

Knut Bartsch has held various positions at Kermi GmbH and at group level since 1997, most recently as Chief Financial Officer and Managing Director of Kermi GmbH. At the same time, he was responsible for the financial area of the entire MBT Climate group. In both functions, he played a key role in shaping the economic development of the companies and guided them through challenging market phases with foresight and a high level of expertise. The company management would like to thank Knut Bartsch for his extraordinary and very successful commitment, his integrity and clear strategic signature.

The management of Kermi GmbH remains unchanged with Alexander Kaiss, who will continue to lead the company as managing director. The succession in financial management has already been arranged and will be implemented soon.

“With Knut Bartsch, we are losing a manager who has demonstrated great expertise and reliability over many years. We would like to thank him for the trustful cooperation and wish him all the best for the future”, says Stefano Bellò, President and CEO of MBT Climate.

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The takeover of ARBONIA climate by the Midea Group has been completed. Together with Clivet S.p.A., which has been acquired by Midea in 2016, the group of companies will form a strong new alliance in the HVAC industry in Europe.

The companies will join forces and expand their market and innovation leadership in Europe with their complementary product offering. The name of the new group will be MBT Climate.

ARBONIA climate, was previously part of the stock listed company Arbonia AG based in Switzerland. In its competence centers throughout Europe, the group of companies develops and manufactures products and systems for sustainable heating and cooling generation, heating and cooling distribution, energy storage, ventilation and air treatment. The division includes the system brands KERMI, PROLUX, SABIANA and VASCO as well as the focused brands arbonia, Britec, Brugman, Cicsa, PZP, Solius, Superia, Tecna and Termovent.

Clivet, based in northern Italy, is a leading European company in the development, manufacture and distribution of intelligent systems for heating, cooling, air renewal and purification. The company offers a wide range of specialized HVAC solutions for the residential, commercial, industrial and IT sectors.

Effective immediately, the joint management responsibility for MBT Climate will be carried by Stefano Bellò, President of MBT Climate, Alexander Kaiss, Senior Vice President of MBT Climate, and Kobe Peng, Vice President of MBT Climate.

By leveraging each other’s capabilities and resources, MBT Climate is well positioned to expand its strength as leading HVAC solution provider in Europe. With ARBONIA climate’s and Clivet´s customer base and channels, know-how and production facilities, high-quality services, and complementary products, as well as Midea’s technical advantages and R&D investment, MBT Climate will offer a seamless, end-to-end solution for climate control, providing customers with the convenience and efficiency of a single-source system provider.

Midea Group plans to create sustainable growth momentum for MBT Climate to drive the sustainable energy transition in the building sector with a strong European entity. Midea Group explains: “Midea will continue to invest in the existing sites, employees and research and development departments of Clivet and ARBONIA climate. We are planning a long-term and successful future together.”

Midea Group has agreed to acquire the ARBONIA climate division. The Board of Directors of Swiss Arbonia AG has accepted Midea Group's offer to purchase its indoor climate specialist. Both parties already signed the agreements. Completion of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and approval by relevant regulators.

Midea Group develops and manufactures products in the area of air conditioning and building technology, industrial components, robotics and automation. The Group’s headquarter is located in Foshan, in the south of China. With more than 190,000 employees, the group achieved a turnover of around 48 billion euros in 2023.

Arbonia climate will join Midea's building technology division, of which the European operations currently center around Clivet, headquartered in Italy. Clivet employs around 1,000 people in Europe, the Middle East and India, and focuses on building technology products for residential households and commercial buildings.

Together Clivet and ARBONIA climate will offer integrated HVAC systems for Mediterranean and Nordic climates. Both groups are committed to support the energy transition through innovative products and solutions.

Alexander Kaiss, CEO of ARBONIA climate, sees the division in good hands going forward: "Midea is a very innovative, competitive group of companies and a strategic investor from the industry that is committed to our successful further development. Midea has a demonstrated track record of past successful investments, notably in Clivet. With this acquisition, Midea is pursuing long-term goals and, together with Clivet, we see great opportunities for further profitable and sustainable growth."

The Board of Directors of Arbonia AG has initiated a sales process for the ARBONIA climate Division. It sees better development possibilities and growth opportunities for its indoor climate specialist outside of the Group.

ARBONIA climate is the umbrella organisation of the following brands: KERMI, PROLUX, SABIANA, VASCO, arbonia, Britec, Brugman, Cicsa, PZP, Solius, Superia, Tecna, and Termovent.

A new strategic investor should enable the ARBONIA climate Division to fully exploit its potential and expertise as well as support the energy revolution in the building sector even more strongly.

In the sales process, the prospective buyers are currently being given a closer look through a due-diligence review to evaluate the opportunities and risks. The identity of the prospective buyers is not being disclosed for confidentiality reasons.

Alexander Kaiss, CEO of the ARBONIA climate Division, is open to the process: “The great interest in us shows that we have very good future prospects as the ARBONIA climate Division, which can improve even further with a new strategic investor. The potential buyers are impressed with our strategy and our prospects for sustainable growth.”

The customers and market partners of ARBONIA climate can count on the division’s services as usual. ARBONIA climate remains committed to its current projects and its strategy.

The ARBONIA climate Division develops and produces energy-efficient indoor climate systems for buildings of all kinds and is a market leader in Europe with its integrated plants and international sales offices. ARBONIA climate is very well positioned for the future thanks to its strategy of significantly shaping the energy revolution with innovative products and systems.

About us: The ARBONIA climate Division is part of the Swiss listed group Arbonia AG, a focused building components supplier. With over 3,000 employees throughout Europe, ARBONIA climate develops and produces energy-efficient indoor climate products and systems for all kinds of buildings. In 2023, ARBONIA climate generated sales of around 577 million Swiss francs.

The division’s sites are located in Dilsen (Belgium), Shanghai (China), Plattling and Glaubitz (Germany), Hagenbach (France), Corbetta (Italy), Legnica and Wroclaw (Poland), Porto (Portugal), Stupino and Moscow (Russia), Arbon (Switzerland), Kladovo and Belgrade (Serbia), Madrid (Spain), Stribro and Opocno (Czechia).