KraussMaffei Group Announces Leadership Change

In its Nov. 29 supervisory board meeting, KraussMaffei Group (KMG) accepted CEO Michael Ruf’s request not to extend his contract, which is set to expire at the end of March 2023. The company also named Li Yong, who has been with KMG’s majority shareholder Sinochem for nearly two decades, as Ruf’s successor. Yong has been working directly with KMG’s business since June 2022.

KraussMaffei’s core competencies include primary processing equipment for injection molding, extrusion and polyurethane processing. At K 2022, it announced its entrance into the additive manufacturing market.

Since 2018, KraussMaffei Group GmbH has been part of KraussMaffei Company Limited, a stock corporation listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, with China’s state-owned chemical conglomerate, Sincochem, as a majority shareholder. In January 2016, a consortium of Chinese companies, lead by state-owned ChemChina, acquired KMG from Canadian private equity firm Onex for 925 million euros.

Ruf, who has a PhD in electrical engineering, was promoted to CEO of KMG in April 2020. He had been serving as its COO. Prior to that, Ruf worked with Robert Bosch GmbH, Harman/Becker Automotive and Continental AG.

Ruf will remain the KMG Management Board Chairman and CEO until Dec. 31, 2022, with his responsibilities transferred to Yong on Jan. 1. Until his contract’s expiration on March 31, 2023, Ruf will assist in the executive handover and smooth transition. He will also remain involved in some ongoing projects.

Yong’s nearly 20 years with Sinochem have been spent in a variety of executive, operational and project management positions. The company notes he’s spent a third of his career abroad. At the company’s K 2022 press conference, Ruf noted that over the last 3 years, KMG built four new plants, including in Einbeck, Germany and Jiaxing, China. These went into operation in 2020, with two more plants starting up presently, including the new company headquarters in Parsdorf, Germany, as well as another facility in Laatzen, Germany. Regarding the shift to Parsdorf, Ruf said the company anticipated starting the main move of people in January, with machinery and equipment already being transitioned.