05/31/2021, Duisburg

German subsidiaries Becker Stahl-Service GmbH and Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH appoint new members of the management

Duisburg, Germany, May 31, 2021 – Becker Stahl-Service GmbH and Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH, both subsidiaries of Klöckner & Co SE, are reorganizing their management. Becker Stahl-Service GmbH has appointed Francois-David Martino as its new CEO, effective June 21, 2021. Furthermore, Christina Kolbeck has been named the new CFO of Becker Stahl-Service GmbH in addition to her role as CFO of Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH. Hans-Georg Pieper retains his executive role as member of the management leading the Sales department at Becker Stahl-Service GmbH. As announced in the context of the Annual General Meeting, Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH has appointed Bernhard Weiß as its new CEO; he takes over as of June 1, 2021 as planned. Sven Koepchen, the current CEO of Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH, will be moving into a cross-functional role, where he will be responsible for the expansion of the higher value-added business in EU-Europe.

Guido Kerkhoff, CEO of Klöckner & Co SE: “With our new strategy, ‘Klöckner & Co 2025: Leveraging Strengths’, we will evolve into the leading digital platform for steel, additional materials and processing services in Europe and the Americas. Therefore, we are very pleased that we have been able to fill the CEO positions at Becker Stahl-Service GmbH as well as at Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH with two eminent experts – Francois-David Martino and Bernhard Weiß – who will be instrumental in pushing ahead with the implementation of our Group strategy in the companies.”

Francois-David Martino held executive roles in Asia and Europe for many years, working in various fields and industries. After obtaining his degree in mechanical engineering, Francois-David Martino served in numerous leadership positions at companies including thyssenkrupp, Siemens and ZF Friedrichshafen. Francois-David Martino most recently held the office of President & CEO China at Danieli & C. Officine Meccaniche S.p.A. Francois-David Martino’s reputation includes international recognition for his expertise in the fields of supply chains and operational excellence and in the successful implementation of growth strategies.

Apart from implementing the new Group strategy at Becker Stahl-Service GmbH, Francois-David Martino will focus on expanding the product and processing portfolio as well as technical expertise in manufacturing while also enhancing the service level for customers and partners. Additional goals include utilizing synergies among the individual Klöckner & Co Group companies to better effect and further streamlining intra-Group structures in order to further increase profitability. Christina Kolbeck, as CFO of Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH and Becker Stahl-Service GmbH, will support these aims by merging the two companies’ administrations in the near future.

As a member of the Management Board of Klöckner & Co SE and CEO Europe, Bernhard Weiß will be responsible for the EU activities and, in addition to his leadership role in France, he will also take over as CEO of Klöckner & Co Deutschland in order to better integrate operations. Bernhard Weiß succeeds Sven Koepchen, who served as CEO of Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH since November 2012. Sven Koepchen will build on his longstanding experience as he steps into a newly created cross-functional role, where he assumes responsibility for expanding the higher value-added business in EU-Europe.

About Becker Stahl-Service GmbH:
Becker Stahl-Service GmbH is one of the largest European service centers in the flat steel sector, supplying customers with wide band, slit strip, rectangular plates, blanks and trapezoid blanks of the highest quality, always on time. The company employs some 500 people and generated sales of around €600 million in fiscal year 2020.

About Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH:
Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH ranks among Germany’s largest companies in steel and metal distribution and provides a comprehensive range of manufacturing and processing services. Through its distribution and service network of some 15 locations, the company serves over 10,000 customers. Klöckner & Co Deutschland GmbH currently employs some 900 people. The company generated sales of around
€670 million in fiscal year 2020.

About Klöckner & Co:
Klöckner & Co is one of the largest producer-independent distributors of steel and metal products and one of the leading steel service companies worldwide. Based on its distribution and service network of some 140 locations in 13 countries, Klöckner & Co supplies more than 100,000 customers. Currently, the Group has some 7,100 employees. Klöckner & Co had sales of some €5.1 billion in fiscal 2020. As a pioneer of the digital transformation in the steel industry, Klöckner & Co’s target is to digitalize and largely automate its supply and service chain and to become the leading digital one-stop-shop platform for steel, other materials, equipment and processing services in Europe and the Americas.

The shares of Klöckner & Co SE are admitted to trading on the regulated market segment (Regulierter Markt) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (Frankfurter Wertpapierbörse) with further post-admission obligations (Prime Standard). Klöckner & Co shares are listed in the SDAX® index of Deutsche Börse.

ISIN: DE000KC01000; WKN: KC0100; Common Code: 025808576.


Klöckner & Co SE contact:

Press
Christian Pokropp – Press Spokesperson
Head of External Communications
Phone: +49 203 307-2050
Email: christian.pokropp@kloeckner.com

Investors
Felix Schmitz
Head of Investor Relations,
Internal Communications & Sustainability
Phone: +49 203 307-2295
Email: felix.schmitz@kloeckner.com

Press Release 05/31/2021

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