Some of the best-known names in manufacturing - including Bosch Automation, Indramat, Mecman and Star - will disappear by the end of the year. Following extensive market research, Bosch Rexroth has decided to adopt the Rexroth brand name for all of its activities.

The single brand strategy, backed by a multi-million pound global marketing campaign, will position Rexroth as "the drive and control company". Revealing the decision recently to British staff recently at their annual sales conference, UK managing director Paul Cooke predicted that with a unified brand, Bosch Rexroth would command a clearer market leadership. He argued that Bosch Rexroth is now the only company to offer a complete portfolio of components, modules, systems and service for hydraulic, electric, pneumatic and mechanical drive and control technologies. Other points to emerge from the conference included:

• a revised UK distribution strategy, combining external distributors with the company`s direct sales network;

• the piloting in the UK of an on-line eShop with a catalogue of core products that can be ordered using credit cards; and

• a plan to combine 60 existing global Web sites into single Rexroth e-commerce portal called Bridge (Bosch Rexroth Integrated Global Entrance).