Arlington Capital Partners has acquired Tex Tech Industries, a manufacturer of specialty materials used in a range of applications in the aerospace, defense, industrial and sporting goods sectors, from ShoreView Industries.
Tex Tech is a manufacturer of engineered textiles, specifically needle and woven felts. The company’s products include ballistic materials for soft body armor; fire blocking, thermal, and insulation used in aircraft; high temperature filtration applications used in the power plant, cement, and asphalt industries; and tennis felt used in tennis balls. The company has a diverse base of customers across a number of markets including aerospace, law enforcement and military, filtration, sporting goods, and industrial. Tex Tech manufactures more than 7,000 products and its Maine facility has more than 200,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing space.
Tex Tech has been a portfolio company of ShoreView Industries since November 2012 when the firm acquired it from Peninsula Capital Partners. The company, led by CEO Ciaran Lynch, was founded in 1904 and is based in Portland, ME with manufacturing facilities in Maine, Thailand, and China (www.textechindustries.com).
“We are excited to partner with Arlington Capital as we start our next chapter,” said Mr. Lynch. “The firm’s buy and build strategy, significant base of capital, as well as network of aerospace and defense relationships will allow us to rapidly increase the company’s scale.”
Arlington Capital Partners has $2.2 billion of committed capital and invests in buyouts and recapitalizations of companies valued from $50 million to $500 million. Sectors of interest include government services and technology; aerospace and defense; healthcare; and business services and software.
“Tex Tech’s unique capabilities and approach to the design and manufacture of specialty materials made this an attractive investment for us,” said Peter Manos, a Managing Partner at Arlington Capital. “Ciaran Lynch and his management team have built an R&D-focused specialty materials company with growth opportunities across many end markets and we are excited to partner with them in the company’s next phase of ownership. Tex Tech represents another investment for Arlington in aerospace and defense specialty manufacturing which aligns with our focused investment approach.”
Arlington Capital is investing out of its fourth fund which closed in July of 2016 with $700 million of capital. The firm is based in Chevy Chase, MD (www.arlingtoncap.com).
“Ciaran and his team have a great reputation in the high performance textiles market and Arlington looks forward to expanding the company through acquisition and continuing to invest in the company’s facilities,” said Chris Stallmann, a Vice President at Arlington Capital. “Manufacturing over 7,000 products, the company’s strong R&D capabilities as well as global manufacturing footprint allows it to be an end-to-end manufacturing partner for its customers’ most demanding specialty material requirements.”
ShoreView Industries, the seller of Tex Tech, makes control and minority investments in US-based middle market companies that have revenues from $20 million to $300 million and operating profits from $5 million to $40 million. Sectors of interest include manufacturing, distribution and service providers. The firm currently has $900 million of capital under management and is based in Minneapolis (www.shoreviewindustries.com).
© 2017 Private Equity Professional | August 25, 2017
