Sao Paulo, Brazil -- Magna Seating announced 12 Jan 2011 that it continues its growth in South America with the acquisition of automotive seat supplier Pabsa SA. The new entity will operate as Magna Seating Argentina.
Pabsa, previously part of the L'Equipe Monteur Group, is based in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and is a vertically integrated supplier of complete seats, foam products, trim covers and seat structures, said Magna, in its statement. In 2010, Pabsa had sales of about $110 million.
Magna Seating is a unit of Magna International, which develops and manufactures complete seating solutions and mechanisms.
According to the seat maker, the acquisition -- which includes two production facilities in Buenos Aires and one in Cordoba, Argentina, and has about 960 employees - "increases Magna Seating's global footprint and further positions the company as a leading supplier of automotive seating solutions in South America."
Joe Pittel, president of Magna Seating, said, "We continue to make a significant commitment to the South American automotive market and our global OEM customers," adding that recent acquisitions have strengthened Magna's position to support customers' global platforms.
The acquisitions include automotive seating supplier Resil Minas, and Magna has also set up a plant in the Sao Paulo area to produce complete seats for General Motors and Volkswagen.
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