Successful integration follows largest acquisition
With the acquisition of PEPP Group B.V., the Zeppelin Group has taken a key strategic step toward growth and significantly expanded its international presence as one of Caterpillar's leading partners worldwide. The acquisition is therefore also an important component of Zeppelin's transformation, which is consistently developing its international positioning from a position of strength. The integration of 23 companies in five countries (Netherlands, Norway, Nigeria, Belgium, and France) significantly expands the Group's operating business. For customers and partners, this results in additional sales and service capacities as well as a stronger regional presence in the respective markets. With the additional sales and service areas, Zeppelin is now active in 29 countries, employs over 12,000 people, and will achieve consolidated sales of more than 5 billion euros in the future.
With the approval of the antitrust authorities, the Post-Merger-Integration phase (PMI) began in June and a realignment of the organizational and management structure took effect. The goal of the group-wide restructuring is to create a future-proof, globally scalable organizational structure with harmonized processes, data, and systems – consistently aligned with the needs of our customers. The Group is now divided into four strategic business units (Construction Industry & Mining, Rental, Power Systems, and Plant Engineering). The integration of the new companies into this structure enables a targeted, strategic bundling of business activities and strengthens international management capabilities, increases efficiency, and improves market penetration in the respective markets.
The integration process follows a structured approach along cross-functional workstreams (business, finance, IT, HR, MarCom, legal, and others), ensures business continuity, and lays the foundation for successful operational cooperation. For the first time, a dedicated PMI and Transformation Office was established for structured management.
Significant progress has already been made in the first few months following the acquisition. Synergy workshops were held to identify and prioritize various opportunities and prepare them for implementation within the strategic business units. Implementation is taking place as part of an overarching transformation program.
The workstreams consistently developed milestones, including integration into the group-wide reporting and management system, the alignment of HR systems and IT and compliance structures, the definition of timelines for harmonization, and the launch of the rebranding. The integration was also clearly visible externally through the renaming of the companies, the change of email and website addresses, and the gradual changeover in the entire external image.
Parallel to the structural integration, the focus remains clearly on operational business. In this way, the Group is creating the conditions to realize its full potential – for customers, employees, in partnership with Caterpillar, and as an investment in long-term success. Until the PMI is completed in the first half of 2026, the focus will be on implementing identified synergies, further integrating systems and processes, and sustainably anchoring a common corporate culture. Zeppelin is pursuing a clearly defined vision: increased efficiency, profitable growth, a sustainable portfolio, and a consistently customer-oriented approach. On this basis, the Group is strengthening its resilience and creating the conditions to position itself for the future in its respective business areas by 2030.