Industrial real-asset investment
Structural change
as investment
opportunity. Realised directly.
When factories close, Mittelstand businesses find no successor, and insolvencies keep rising, structurally favourable entry points into industrial real assets emerge. MBR buys directly — with own capital, a global buyer network, and complete operational execution.
Core of the thesis
- Germany faces a structural shift — energy costs, succession gaps, international competition. Not a passing business cycle, but a longer-term shift.
- Industrial machines retain global market value — growing markets (Turkey, Mexico, India) buy European precision machines at market prices.
- The delta is the return: distressed acquisition in Europe, market-appropriate realisation globally.
- MBR is the operator: own capital, proprietary deal flow, complete execution — no broker, no auction house.
- Entry at single-item level or as a complete machine-pool takeover — sized to target and investment horizon.
- Direct point of contact: Marcel Brockmann (CEO) — no intermediaries, no call centers.
The investment thesis
Machines keep producing
even in bad times.
A DMG Mori NLX 2500SY doesn't stop having value because German GDP falls. A Hermle C42 doesn't lose its global market because a family business in Bavaria finds no successor. Industrial precision machines are physical assets with measurable substance, a demonstrable market price, and a buyer base across three continents.
The return doesn't come from speculation — it comes from the information asymmetry between the distressed seller in Germany and the growth-oriented buyer in Turkey or Mexico. MBR closes that gap. With its own logistics. On its own account.
This isn't a new business model — MBR has done this from day one. What's new: the supply of high-quality distressed assets in Germany is rising structurally. The opportunity is growing.
+30%
Insolvencies DE 2024 vs. prior year
~125,000
Businesses without a successor by 2026
20+
Countries in MBR's buyer network
250+
Own transactions as data foundation
Structural drivers
Why now is the right time.
Four structural forces simultaneously create supply in Europe and demand worldwide — a rare pattern in industrial real-asset investing.
Mittelstand without succession
~125,000
Businesses without a successor by 2026 (KfW)
One in three businesses in German manufacturing finds no successor. That creates a structural, predictable wave of liquidations — independent of the business cycle.
Insolvency wave 2024–2026
+30%
Corporate insolvencies vs. prior year (Destatis)
Germany's insolvency figures rose over 30% in 2024 — a record level since the financial crisis. Metalworking and automotive supply are disproportionately affected.
Energy costs & relocation
3–5×
Industrial electricity price, Germany vs. US/China
Energy-intensive production is relocating. Machines that no longer run economically here retain full market value in growing markets.
Global buyer demand
20+
Countries in MBR's active buyer network
Turkey, Mexico, India, North Africa — markets in active industrialisation pay European market prices for qualified CNC precision machines. That is the liquidity base.
The counter-cyclical logic — spelled out
Conventional real-asset investments (real estate, commodities) correlate with the business cycle: valuations fall in recession, rise in expansion. Industrial distressed assets break that pattern — for three reasons:
1. Supply and cycle move in opposite directions
The worse the German economy performs, the more businesses liquidate. That means: exactly when other markets record declines, the available stock of high-quality CNC machines at distressed prices grows. The buyer who can act then has the choice — not the seller.
2. Global buyers decouple from the European cycle
Turkey was one of the most dynamic growth regions in machine tools in 2024 and 2025 — regardless of what happens in Frankfurt or Munich. India, Mexico and North Africa are running their own industrialisation cycles. That means: whoever holds well-bought machines during a European downturn finds spend-ready buyers in markets that are trending upward right then.
3. Substance value replaces market speculation
A Hermle C42 has no share price — it has a market value derived from actual transaction prices. MBR has made 250+ such transactions on its own account. That data foundation is the real valuation edge: we know what a machine in what condition fetches in what market — not because we estimate it, but because we've lived it.
What this means concretely for investors
MBR is not a fund and not a financial services provider. We're a machine-trading company that operates on own capital and gives investors access to its infrastructure — deal flow, valuation expertise, operational execution. Access is the advantage. Not the next analyst report.
Anyone who wants to invest in distressed industrial substance needs an operator. Not a broker. One who touches the machine, values it, collects it, and sells it. That's MBR.
Asset classes
What we buy and realise.
MBR invests directly — with own capital, on own account. No broker model, no commission, no middlemen.
Machine pools from insolvencies
Complete inventories from insolvency proceedings — bought directly, without an auction process. Fast execution on own capital. Information edge through our network of insolvency administrators.
Business liquidations
Machine pools from succession-driven closures, site relocations and capacity reductions. Often better maintained than insolvency stock — and plannable with more lead time.
Premium single items
High-value individual machines from €50,000 — Hermle C-series, DMG Mori DMU, Roeders RXP, Mazak Integrex. Measurably valued, with inspection report. Global liquidity through a proven market.
Industrial facilities
Entire production lines, plant buildings, operating businesses — for investors who want to invest in productive substance rather than paper. Asset deal, not share deal.
Deal flow
Four markets. Continuous access.
Deal flow comes from four proprietary channels — not from public platforms. That's the information edge.
DE
Primary market
DE · AT · CH
Direct access to insolvency law firms, restructuring advisors and business liquidations. Monthly deal flow from the DACH core market — proprietary, not publicly tendered.
ES
Growth market
ES · MX · LATAM
compramostucnc.es opens up acquisition opportunities from Spain, Mexico and Latin America. Two-way use: European machines flow to LATAM, LATAM stock reaches European buyers.
AR
Import market
AR · BR · Southern Cone
Active import market for European precision machines — automotive, aerospace, metalworking. Buying power holds even in regional downturns thanks to export-oriented industry.
GL
20+ countries
Global Auction
machinetools.auction connects international buyers with European machine stock. Qualified bidders from 20+ countries — a liquidity base even for hard-to-place assets.
The operator advantage
What sets MBR apart from every other market participant.
Own capital. Own risk.
MBR buys on own capital, own account. No broker model, no commission income, no dependence on lining up buyers in advance. That speeds up decisions and strengthens the negotiating position.
20 years of finance & asset assessment.
Valuation with bank logic: residual value, credit risk, technical failure risk. We think in the same categories as leasing companies and investment committees — and can back it with data.
Operational execution team.
A valuation is worthless without dismantling, packaging, export and handover. MBR runs the full process — from the shop floor to the buyer, worldwide. No outsourcing of the critical steps.
Proprietary deal flow.
The competitive edge isn't the machine — it's access. MBR sees deals that never appear on the large marketplaces, through a direct network of insolvency administrators, plant managers and trustees.
What we deliver
Four pillars of the investment proposition.
Counter-cyclical entry
Distressed supply rises in downturns; export demand stays. Few asset classes offer this pattern.
Network advantage
250+ closed transactions create the pricing and buyer access individual investors can't replicate.
Operational execution
Valuation, acquisition, dismantling, logistics, realisation — all under one team, on one capital base.
Documented track record
€25M+ transaction volume, 20+ countries, 0% post-sale claim rate over the last 24 months.
Partner profiles
Investors who think in substance.
Family offices
Real-asset allocation with operational management — not pure financial exposure.
Private equity
Add-on acquisitions of distressed industrial portfolios, structured exit through MBR ecosystem.
Asset managers
Bank workout, leasing residuals, recovery mandates — institutional deal flow.
Industrial investors
Strategic acquisitions and disposals — buyer and seller side, same team.
How a deal is structured
- Deal sourcing. MBR's pipeline aggregates from corporate divestitures, insolvency administrators, banks and leasing companies, OEMs and direct seller outreach. Investors see deals before they hit any market.
- Valuation and diligence. Technical inspection, market-data analysis, residual-value projection. Report follows the same methodology used in our bank and leasing work.
- Capital structure. Direct purchase on MBR balance sheet, co-investment, or fund-style participation. Terms negotiated per deal, depending on investor mandate.
- Operational execution. MBR runs dismantling, logistics, documentation and buyer placement through the existing ecosystem (usedcnc.de, machinetools.auction, regional channels).
- Realisation and distribution. Transparent settlement with full audit trail. Buyer identity, proceeds, ancillary costs documented.
Why information asymmetry matters
The used-machine market is not transparent. List prices, auction results and dealer offers differ widely for identical machines, because buyers can't verify condition and sellers can't reach the right international demand. MBR's edge is operational: we close the information gap on both sides of the trade.
That edge is built — not financial. It compounds through 250+ transactions, regional buyer networks in 20+ countries, and a brand reputation that brings sellers to us before they list publicly.
Frequently asked
Why distressed industrial assets now? +
Structural pressure on German Mittelstand (energy, succession, automotive) lifts the supply of high-quality machines at distressed prices. Global buyer demand stays.
Counter-cyclical? +
Yes — supply grows in downturns, demand from growth markets continues regardless of European recession.
How is MBR different from auction houses? +
Own capital, own account. No broker risk. Faster decisions, complete operational execution.
Realistic returns? +
Depend on asset quality, timing and channel. High-end 5-axis centers hold 55–80% of new price even under distressed conditions. The delta is the return.
Minimum deal size? +
Single items from €50,000. Pools from €200,000. Structured partnerships from €500,000.
How do I get access to deal flow? +
Access to MBR's deal flow runs through direct partnership — no public portal. First step: an initial conversation with Marcel Brockmann.
Talk first, term sheet later.
We don't publish a pitch deck. Send a short note about your mandate (ticket size, return target, geography) and we set up a call with Marcel directly. No fund administrator. No intermediary.