GRUBER Logistics expands rail freight operations through Hamburg acquisition
GRUBER Logistics has expanded its European intermodal transport operations following the acquisition and integration of Hamburg-based freight forwarding company Gruber AG, strengthening its rail freight connections between Italy and the Port of Hamburg.
The acquisition, announced in October 2026, brings the German company back into the wider GRUBER business after almost three decades of separate operations. Gruber AG, previously owned by a group of managers, specialises in multimodal freight transport, with a particular focus on rail services.
The integration strengthens GRUBER Logistics’ capabilities along the Brenner corridor, which connects northern and central Italy with Hamburg and its major seaport. According to the company, its combined operations now handle more than 20,000 rail shipments annually along this route.
The Hamburg business originally emerged during the 1990s, when two children of GRUBER Logistics founder Josef Gruber pursued separate business activities. While the original company continued operating from South Tyrol, the Hamburg-based enterprise developed its own freight forwarding activities, with an emphasis on intermodal transportation.
Gruber AG entered the intermodal transport market in 2003 with an initial fleet of ten trailers. Its subsequent development established the rail transport expertise that now forms part of GRUBER Logistics’ wider European offering.
Integration strengthens intermodal services
The acquisition adds Gruber AG’s transport equipment, freight forwarding capabilities and rail operations to the group’s existing service portfolio.
GRUBER Logistics said the expanded operations will support customers requiring combined road and rail transport, particularly on routes connecting Italian industrial regions with Hamburg’s port infrastructure.
Martin Gruber, Chief Executive Officer of GRUBER Logistics, described the acquisition as the return of an important part of the company’s history, alongside an opportunity to continue cooperation within a unified business structure.
The transaction comes during GRUBER Logistics’ 90th anniversary year. Founded in 1936 by Josef Gruber, the South Tyrol-based company has developed from its original transport activities into a European logistics provider operating across several freight segments.
The group also reported a record operating result for its German business during the first half of 2026, following the completion of transformation activities associated with its acquisition of Universal Transport Group in September 2022.
The company has not disclosed the financial terms of the Gruber AG acquisition or provided a separate breakdown of the additional rail capacity resulting from the integration.
