Klausner Group

The Klausner Group (legally Klausner Trading International GmbH) was an Austrian family-owned company in the wood industry headquartered in Oberndorf in Tirol. Its roots go back to 1918, when Max Klausner founded the Bahnhofsägewerk Klausner in St. Johann in Tirol. Over the following decades the group expanded into one of Europe's larger softwood sawmilling operations, with production sites in Austria and Germany and, later, the United States. According to the company, it produced approximately 2 million cubic meters of softwood lumber annually. The group's growth was driven by a series of greenfield and brownfield sawmill projects: Klausner Holz Thüringen (KHT) in Friesau from 1992, Klausner Nordic Timber (KNT) in Wismar from 1998, Klausner Holz Sachsen (KHS) in Kodersdorf from 2004, Klausner Holz Niedersachsen (KHN) in Adelebsen from 2006, and Klausner Holz Bayern (KHB) in Landsberg am Lech. Klausner Trading International (KTI) was founded in 2004 to bundle worldwide sales, and a management center was built in Oberndorf in Tirol in 2005/2006. In 2007 the group founded Klausner Trading USA (KTU) in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, to serve the American market, and built a combined heat and power plant at the Thuringia site. The global financial crisis from 2007 hit the softwood lumber market hard, with US sales falling by roughly 60–70% and world market sales by 20–30%. The group entered a restructuring process in 2008 with Roland Berger and its financing banks. Production at Landsberg am Lech was suspended on 1 January 2009. On 15 June 2010 the Wismar and Landsberg am Lech mills were sold to the Russian Ilim Timber, and the machinery at Adelebsen was sold to the Swedish forest group SÖDRA. The restructuring was completed by 2010. The Kodersdorf sawmill was sold to the Schweighofer Group on 7 October 2015, and the remaining Thuringia mill was sold to the Canadian wood group Mercer International in March 2017. Meanwhile, the US subsidiary invested in two sawmills in the eastern United States: Klausner Lumber One (KL1) in Suwanee County, Florida, near Live Oak, and Klausner Lumber Two (KL2) in Halifax County, North Carolina, near Enfield. Both were sold at online auctions to Binderholz in August (KL1) and December (KL2) 2020. Klausner Trading International GmbH filed for insolvency in April 2020, accompanied by the abrupt departure of Austrian management from the United States under the pretext of the COVID-19 pandemic and the unexplained cessation of wage payments to employees. Klausner Nordamerika Beteiligungs GmbH also filed for insolvency in parallel. The group is therefore no longer an active operating business.

The Klausner Group traces its origins to 1918, when Max Klausner founded the Bahnhofsägewerk Klausner in St. Johann in Tirol, Austria, the predecessor of Klausner Holzindustrie GmbH & Co. KG. For decades it operated as a regional sawmill. In 1988 the existing sawmill line was modernized, raising capacity to 80,000 solid cubic meters per year. By 1990 the Tyrolean sawmill was producing at its capacity limit. In 1992 the newly founded Klausner Holz Thüringen (KHT) began operations in Friesau (part of Saalburg-Ebersdorf) with a cutting capacity of more than 2.2 million solid cubic meters per year and a planing capacity of more than 0.8 million cubic meters per year. The St. Johann in Tirol sawmill was closed in 1996. In Wismar, production by Klausner Nordic Timber (KNT) started in 1998 with a cutting capacity of more than 2.0 million solid cubic meters per year and a planing capacity of at least 0.7 million cubic meters per year. In 2004 Klausner Holz Sachsen (KHS) was founded in Kodersdorf with a cutting capacity of more than 1.2 million solid cubic meters per year and a planing capacity of more than 0.4 million cubic meters per year, and Klausner Trading International (KTI) was founded in Austria to bundle the group's worldwide sales activities. A management center was built in Oberndorf in Tirol in 2005/2006, now the seat of Klausner Trading International GmbH and the group's management. In 2006 the sawmill of the insolvent Kühne GmbH in Adelebsen was taken over, leading to the founding of Klausner Holz Niedersachsen (KHN) and its modernization and expansion to a cutting capacity of about 1.5 million solid cubic meters per year and a planing capacity of more than 0.9 million cubic meters per year. Further expansion came with the founding of Klausner Holz Bayern (KHB) in Landsberg am Lech with a cutting capacity of at least 1.5 million solid cubic meters per year and a planing capacity of more than 0.9 million cubic meters per year. To reach the American market from the United States, the company founded Klausner Trading USA (KTU) in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, in 2007. In the same year it built a combined heat and power (CHP) plant on the site of Klausner Holz Thüringen in Saalburg-Ebersdorf with a capacity of up to 50 MW. The CHP provided 35 MW of thermal energy for the lumber drying facilities and produced up to 13 MW of electrical energy fed into the public grid. As a result of the global financial crisis from 2007, softwood lumber sales fell by about 60–70% in the US market and about 20–30% in the world market. The Klausner Group also had to absorb significant sales declines and consequent production cutbacks. This market collapse could not be fully compensated, pushing the company into financial difficulty. In 2008 the restructuring process began together with Roland Berger and the financing banks. Production at the Landsberg am Lech plant was suspended on 1 January 2009. Later, on 15 June 2010, the group's plants in Wismar (Klausner Nordic Timber – KNT) and Landsberg am Lech (Klausner Holz Bayern – KHB) were sold to the Russian Ilim Timber as part of a comprehensive restructuring concept. The machinery and equipment at the Adelebsen site (Klausner Holz Niedersachsen – KHN) were sold to the Swedish forestry and wood group SÖDRA. The dismantling, reassembly and commissioning of these facilities were carried out by the Klausner Group. The proceeds from the plant sales were used to restructure and repay the group's outstanding financial liabilities. This restructuring process was completed by 2010. On 7 October 2015 the Kodersdorf sawmill (Klausner Holz Sachsen) was sold to the Schweighofer Group. In March 2017 the remaining plant in Thuringia was sold to the Canadian wood group Mercer International. At the same time, the Klausner US subsidiary invested in building two sawmills in the eastern United States: Klausner Lumber One (KL1) in Suwanee County, Florida, near the town of Live Oak, and Klausner Lumber Two (KL2) in Halifax County, North Carolina, near the town of Enfield. Both plants were sold at online auctions to Binderholz in August (KL1) and December (KL2) 2020. Klausner Trading International GmbH filed for insolvency in April 2020, accompanied by the hasty departure of the Austrian management from the United States under the pretext of the COVID-19 pandemic and the unexplained cessation of wage payments to employees. In parallel, Klausner Nordamerika Beteiligungs GmbH also filed for insolvency.

• 2020

  Klausner Trading International GmbH files for insolvency in April; Klausner Nordamerika Beteiligungs GmbH also files. Both US sawmills are sold at online auctions to Binderholz in August and December.

• 2017

  In March, the remaining Thuringia plant is sold to Mercer International; the US subsidiary invests in two sawmills in the eastern United States.

• 2015

  On 7 October, the Kodersdorf sawmill is sold to the Schweighofer Group.

• 2010

  On 15 June, the Wismar and Landsberg am Lech plants are sold to Ilim Timber; Adelebsen machinery is sold to SÖDRA. Restructuring is completed.

• 2009

  Production at the Landsberg am Lech plant is suspended on 1 January.

• 2008

  Restructuring process begins with Roland Berger and the financing banks.

• 2007

  Klausner Trading USA (KTU) is founded in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; a combined heat and power plant is built at the Thuringia site.

• 2006

  Takeover of the Kühne GmbH sawmill in Adelebsen; founding of Klausner Holz Niedersachsen (KHN).

• 2005

  Construction of the management center in Oberndorf in Tirol (completed 2005/2006).

• 2004

  Klausner Holz Sachsen (KHS) is founded in Kodersdorf; Klausner Trading International (KTI) is founded in Austria to bundle worldwide sales.

• 1998

  Klausner Nordic Timber (KNT) starts production in Wismar with a cutting capacity of more than 2.0 million solid cubic meters per year.

• 1996

  The St. Johann in Tirol sawmill is closed.

• 1992

  Klausner Holz Thüringen (KHT) begins operations in Friesau with a cutting capacity of more than 2.2 million solid cubic meters per year.

• 1990

  The Tyrolean sawmill produces at its capacity limit.

• 1988

  The existing sawmill line is modernized, raising capacity to 80,000 solid cubic meters per year.

• 1918

  Max Klausner founds the Bahnhofsägewerk Klausner in St. Johann in Tirol, Austria.

Integrated softwood sawmilling group with European and US production, focused on high-volume lumber output for international markets.

• Softwood lumber

  Sawn softwood timber produced at the group's sawmills.

• Planed timber

  Planed wood products from the group's planing facilities.

• Abrupt departure and unpaid wages

Read more

1. 1Klausner-Gruppe – Wikipediade.wikipedia.org
2. 2Klausner Group – Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Klausner Group official website (domain parked)klausner-group.com