ELKHART, Ind., Jan. 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- THOR
Industries, Inc. (NYSE: THO) today announced the formation of Hymer
USA, a new subsidiary focused on
producing and marketing recreational vehicles (RVs) utilizing
European manufacturing practices, automation and control standards
- a first for North America's RV
industry. Hymer USA will be based
in Bristol, Indiana, with initial
product availability expected in the fourth quarter of calendar
year 2020.
The announcement follows THOR's 2019 acquisition of Europe's Erwin Hymer Group (EHG), which
created the world's largest RV manufacturer, holding leading
positions on both continents. Erwin Hymer Group is a long-standing
leader in the European RV market and one of the largest RV
manufacturers in Europe. EHG,
including its Hymer brand, is well-known for innovation, design and
product quality.
"We are very proud of our extensive brand portfolio, which has
historically allowed us to be responsive to the diverse needs of
both our dealers and consumers. The Hymer brand and product
offering has already received very positive feedback from our North
American dealer network," stated Bob
Martin, President and CEO of THOR Industries. "Delivering to
the North American market the innovation, design and quality for
which the Hymer brand is known will benefit consumers and dealers
and further enhance THOR's leadership position within the market,
which we believe will provide strong long-term value to our
investors."
"We anticipate significant benefits in working together with our
German team, learning from each other and, ultimately, offering
unique products to provide years of enjoyable experiences for our
customers. As we begin to leverage the combined talent of our
companies and share best practices across the globe, we are more
optimistic than ever about the future."
Initial phases of the EHG acquisition integration have been
completed with the oversight of Troy
James, THOR Industries Senior Vice President. James, one of
THOR's most experienced company leaders, who has spent considerable
time in Europe over the past year
engaging with the EHG leadership team, will take on the additional
responsibility of overseeing Hymer USA.
"Troy is one of our top leaders. His experience and leadership
make him ideally suited to lead our newly created Hymer
USA subsidiary while continuing
his responsibilities with the EHG leadership team," shared
Bob Martin. "We look forward to the
leadership Troy will provide in introducing the Hymer product and
manufacturing processes to the North American market, uniquely
establishing Hymer as a global brand."
"Having worked closely with EHG this past year, I'm very
impressed by their teamwork, product innovation and manufacturing
processes," James said. "We are very excited to fully incorporate
the EHG best practices into the operations of the newly created
Hymer USA subsidiary starting on
day one."
Employees in key product development roles and with specific
European manufacturing expertise will relocate from Germany to Bristol to allow Hymer USA to replicate its proven manufacturing
process in collaboration with THOR's skilled American workforce.
The Company will utilize an existing, newly renovated,
company-owned facility with the expectation of investing
approximately $8 to $10 million in additional capital expenditures
during 2020- primarily for machinery and equipment to build out the
facility for Hymer USA.
"Hymer USA will feature a very
different way of manufacturing not currently seen in the North
American RV industry, including automated processes that will be
implemented throughout design and assembly," James said. "Products
will benefit from the world-leading quality standards set by EHG
and our new work environment will feature highly skilled team
members collaborating directly with employees from EHG's European
operations while incorporating the speed to market for which THOR
is well-regarded."
About THOR Industries, Inc.
THOR is the sole owner of
operating subsidiaries that, combined, represent the world's
largest manufacturer of recreational vehicles. For more information
on the Company and its products, please go to
www.thorindustries.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This release includes certain statements that are "forward
looking" statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward looking
statements are made based on management's current expectations and
beliefs regarding future and anticipated developments and their
effects upon Thor, and inherently involve uncertainties and risks.
These forward looking statements are not a guarantee of future
performance. We cannot assure you that actual results will not
differ materially from our expectations. Factors which could cause
materially different results include, among others, raw material
and commodity price fluctuations; raw material, commodity or
chassis supply restrictions; the impact of tariffs on material or
other input costs; the level and magnitude of warranty claims
incurred; legislative, regulatory and tax law and/or policy
developments including their potential impact on our dealers and
their retail customers or on our suppliers; the costs of compliance
with governmental regulation; legal and compliance issues including
those that may arise in conjunction with recently completed
transactions; lower consumer confidence and the level of
discretionary consumer spending; interest rate fluctuations; the
potential impact of interest rate fluctuations on the general
economy and specifically on our dealers and consumers; restrictive
lending practices; management changes; the success of new and
existing products, services and production facilities; consumer
preferences; the ability to efficiently utilize existing production
facilities; the pace of acquisitions and the successful closing,
integration and financial impact thereof; the potential loss of
existing customers of acquisitions; our ability to retain key
management personnel of acquired companies; a shortage of necessary
personnel for production; the loss or reduction of sales to key
dealers; disruption of the delivery of units to dealers; increasing
costs for freight and transportation; asset impairment charges;
equity investment impairment charges; cost structure changes;
competition; the impact of potential losses under repurchase or
financed receivable agreements; the potential impact of the
strength of the U.S. dollar on international demand for products
priced in U.S. dollars; general economic, market and political
conditions in the various countries in which our products are sold;
the impact of changing emissions and other regulatory standards in
the various jurisdictions in which our products are sold; and
changes to our investment and capital allocation strategies or
other facets of our strategic plan. Additional risks and
uncertainties surrounding the acquisition of Erwin Hymer Group SE
("EHG") include risks regarding the potential benefits of the
acquisition and the anticipated operating synergies, the
integration of the business, the impact of exchange rate
fluctuations and unknown or understated liabilities related to the
acquisition and EHG's business. These and other risks and
uncertainties are discussed more fully in Item 1A of our Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the year ended July
31, 2019.
We disclaim any obligation or undertaking to disseminate any
updates or revisions to any forward looking statements contained in
this release or to reflect any change in our expectations after the
date hereof or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on
which any statement is based, except as required by law.
CONTACTS
Investor Relations:
Mark
Trinske, Vice President of Investor Relations
mtrinske@thorindustries.com
(574) 970-7912
Media:
Renee Jones,
Senior Director of Marketing
rjones@thorindustries.com
(574) 294-7772
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SOURCE THOR Industries, Inc.