A German defence firm, Renk AG, is expanding its footprint in Eastern Europe by building up service and assembly facilities in Poland, company chief executive Alexander Sagel told “Spiegel”. The company will first provide maintenance for gearboxes, engines and suspensions before moving on to production. This local support will shorten response times for customers in Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic states. Over the next four to five years Renk plans to invest up to €500 million in capacity expansion, research and development.
Renk, a key supplier of gearboxes to the German navy and almost all Western tank manufacturers-including KNDS, Rheinmetall and Leonardo-positions itself as a gauge for how Europe’s land armaments are progressing. The company’s investment push comes amid criticism of the slow pace of heavy weapon procurement in European NATO members, a trend highlighted by a McKinsey study. German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has repeatedly called for increased tempo.
Poland is considered ideal because it brings Renk closer to regional buyers. Sagel noted that when a tank breaks down during a border exercise or in Ukraine, a 2,000‑kilometre journey for repair is impractical. No other European NATO country has poured as much money into armament as Poland relative to its GDP, and NATO is strengthening its eastern flank.
The firm also has ambitious plans for Italy. The Italian army has ordered more than 1,000 battle and infantry tanks from Leonardo and Rheinmetall, with Renk delivering key components. Before the Ukraine war, Renk produced 200-300 gearboxes a year; by the end of 2026 the Augsburg facility aims to lift output to about 800 units. Sagel expects sales to triple from 2024 to roughly €3 billion by the decade’s end.
Renk is keen to tap the growing market for autonomous combat systems. “This creates a mass market” Sagel said. The company is collaborating with the start‑up Arx Robotics, which builds small AI‑controlled tracked vehicles, and sees potential to co‑develop unmanned vehicles with customers.