Gunnebo Group last week announced the spinoff of Gunnebo Entrance Control to ASSA ABLOY, cutting the company virtually in half, but unleashing great potential in the growth sector served by Gunnebo Safe Storage. Just days after the announcement, asmag had the opportunity to speak with Stefan Syren, President and CEO of Gunnebo Group, about the opportunities that arise for the company as a pure-play safe storage brand.
asmag.com: With Gunnebo Entrance Control becoming part of ASSA ABLOY, Gunnebo Group will now focus on Safe Storeage and the technology around it. Why is it the right strategic move, and why is it the right time for it?
Stefan Syren: Over the past decade, we have transformed Gunnebo from an industrial conglomerate into a more focused technology business, integrating digital innovation to deliver smarter and more connected security solutions. This transformation has been driven by continued investment in our people, manufacturing capabilities, product development, digital expertise and sustainability. This agreement is the next logical step in that strategic journey.
Today, the business has evolved to a stage where each of our two divisions has its own clear direction, investment priorities and growth opportunities. Giving each business the opportunity to focus on its own strengths, under the ownership best aligned with its future, creates greater clarity for our employees, customers and partners.
With Gunnebo Entrance Control becoming part of an organisation where access solutions are a core strategic focus, we believe this provides both businesses the strongest platform for their next stage of development.
By concentrating on Safe Storage and SecureTech, we can direct our expertise, investment and resources towards the areas where we see the strongest potential for long-term sustainable growth. It means accelerating innovation, strengthening our service offering and continuing to develop technologies that respond to changing customer needs.
asmag.com: The focus of asmag and its readers is usually more on access control than on safe storage solutions, but we are obviously aware of synergies. Can you tell us a bit about the conditions in the safe storage vertical that enable Gunnebo Group to spin off Entrance Control and narrow its focus?
Stefan Syren: The Safe Storage market has several characteristics that support a focused long-term strategy. Demand is driven by fundamental security requirements that remain consistent across economic cycles, including the protection of cash, valuables, documents, data and other critical assets. In an increasingly uncertain geopolitical environment like today, the need to secure critical assets becomes even more important, highlighting the long-term fundamentals of the market.
Customers in this space often require highly specialised solutions, supported by strong expertise, innovative technology and connectivity together with required certification, compliance, manufacturing and installation.
These market conditions create a clear opportunity for a specialist Safe Storage business with the capabilities and experience to serve customers across different sectors and geographies. Gunnebo Group has a long history in this area, with established products, technologies and customer relationships that provide a strong foundation for continued development.
This position gives Gunnebo the ability to concentrate its resources on Safe Storage as a focused business, while allowing Entrance Control to pursue its own strategic direction within access and flow management. The two areas share a heritage in security, but the market dynamics, customer needs and investment priorities are increasingly distinct.
Tell us a bit about the impact of the spinoff on Gunnebo’s R&D pipeline. What are areas within safe storage or beyond safe storage where you see untapped potential?
The divestment allows us to strengthen our position within the SecureTech market and focus more closely on the specific challenges facing customers responsible for protecting high value assets.
One area of continued focus is connected security, where we have already launched a number of customer solutions like the Hamilton Drive-Up solution and the AmpliSec connected lock, which are both connected to Gunnebo iQ software, a platform where our customers can steer their products, security access as well as customer offerings. These features each support greater control, auditability and flexibility across a wide range of security applications, while helping our customers manage security more effectively across their business .
We will also be able to develop solutions that are better aligned to different operational requirements and risk profiles. As customer expectations continue to evolve, there is increasing demand for storage solutions that combine certified physical protection with technologies that support more effective security management.
asmag.com: In terms of markets, Gunnebo has a strong manufacturing presence in Europe, where the need for certified safe storage solutions is increasing. The market is growing globally, also in other regions, such as the Middle East and APAC. Where is your focus in this regard going forward?
Stefan Syren: All regions are strategically important for our business, and we continue to see attractive growth opportunities across the world, including the Americas, APAC, Europe and the Middle East.
Over the past few years, we have adopted a regionalisation strategy that brings us closer to our customers, enabling us to respond more effectively to local market requirements through local organisations and manufacturing capabilities, and we today have factories in all our regions, except the Middle East and Africa.
We are also utilising several global strengths to complement our regional approach, like software and software platform development, sustainability approaches, Gunnebo Production System which includes our manufacturing concepts and technology as well as AI tools development.
Going forward, our focus is on strengthening our position in key growth markets while maintaining a balanced global presence and leveraging the advantages of being both a global company and a strong local partner.
This is already being shown in India where we have a factory alongside Indonesia, together with China market showing strong growth; whilst our presence in the US is strengthened with a Hamilton factory in Ohio USA. We have market leading positions in most regions globally.
Europe remains a significant focus for us, supported by recent investments that have strengthened our manufacturing and technology capabilities across the region. The integration of Primat, WITTKOPP and Tecnosicurezza, combined with investments in our facilities in Markersdorf and Serbia and our Innovation Hub in Italy, has created a strong European platform that brings together safe production, locking technology and manufacturing expertise, enhancing both our scale and capabilities across the region.
The recent changes within the Group allow us to concentrate fully on Safe Storage, building on our manufacturing footprint, technical expertise and certification knowledge to support customers in those markets where secure storage continues to play an important role in managing risk.
asmag.com: For system integrators who currently work with Gunnebo across both Entrance Control and Safe Storage, what will change?
Stefan Syren: For system integrators, the most important point is there should be no disruption to the relationships, products or support they rely on.
Gunnebo Entrance Control will become part of ASSA ABLOY, while Gunnebo Safe Storage will continue as a dedicated business focused exclusively on secure storage solutions. Both organisations will continue serving their respective markets with the expertise, innovative products and support capabilities which our customers and partners already know.
Many integrators work across multiple security disciplines and have long-standing relationships with both businesses and again, this will not change overnight. Existing projects, customer commitments and day-to-day engagement remain a priority throughout the transition process.
Looking further ahead, the change allows each business to concentrate fully on its core area of expertise. For Gunnebo Safe Storage, it means a dedicated focus on protecting valuables through certified storage solutions, while Entrance Control will continue its development as part of ASSA ABLOY's access solutions portfolio.
Ultimately, system integrators can expect continuity, stability and the same commitment to supporting their customers, while benefiting from two businesses that are each focused on their respective markets.
All regions are important and strategic for our business, and we continue to see attractive growth opportunities across the world, including the Middle East and APAC.
Over the past few years, we have pursued a regionalisation strategy that brings us closer to our customers, enabling us to respond more effectively to local market requirements through local organisations and manufacturing capabilities.
Going forward, our focus is on strengthening our position in key growth markets while maintaining a balanced global presence and leveraging the advantages of being both a global company and a strong local partner.