HELLA Aftermarket and Special Applications under new management

Date: Thursday 17 September 2020

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Stefan van Dalen (pictured above) and Christoph Söhnchen (pictured below) have taken over responsibility for the Aftermarket and Special Applications business segments respectively at international automotive supplier, HELLA. As executive managers, they report to the relevant members of the HELLA management board: Dr. Rolf Breidenbach for Aftermarket and Bernard Schäferbarthold for Special Applications.

Stefan van Dalen (50) has been working for HELLA since 2016 and has held various management positions during this time, most recently as head of the Corporate Logistics central function. Prior to that, the Dutchman, who has a Master of Business Administration degree, held leading positions in supply chain management in the automotive and consumer goods industry for around twenty years. Christoph Söhnchen (41) has been working for HELLA since 2006. The graduate industrial engineer was most recently responsible for sensors, working from HELLA's US site in Northville, Michigan.

"Stefan van Dalen and Christoph Söhnchen are now responsible for the Aftermarket and Special Applications business segments and both bring many years of international experience to the roles. They will continue to drive forward our business activities in these areas with their high level of technological and industry expertise," says HELLA CEO, Dr. Rolf Breidenbach. "Both the Aftermarket and the Special Applications business segments are of great importance to HELLA, as they address other customer groups in addition to our automotive core business and therefore contribute to the stability of our business model."

In the Aftermarket segment (€560 million sales; 1,650 employees) as a whole, HELLA's business adds up to around 35,000 vehicle-specific parts, universal parts and accessories, as well as sophisticated workshop equipment. In the Special Applications segment (€343 million sales; 2,450 employees), HELLA uses its automotive core competencies to develop and manufacture lighting technology and electronic products for a large number of different special vehicles, such as agricultural and construction machinery, buses, mobile homes and the marine sector, as well as for various small-series, for example electric vehicle, manufacturers.

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