ABC Technologies, a portfolio company of Apollo and a manufacturer of automotive plastic components, has agreed to acquire certain automotive North American units from Plastikon Industries for $130 million.
Post-closing, the acquired assets will operate as Plastikon Automotive, a Tier One and Tier Two supplier of automotive interiors – headliners, door assemblies and center consoles – and electric vehicle (EV) battery housings. The company has 900 employees and operates three facilities in the United States in California, Texas, and Kentucky. Its manufacturing capabilities include injection molding, compression molding, plastics welding, wrapping and fusing, adhesive bonding, painting and robotic assembly. In FY2022, Plastikon Automotive’s revenue was approximately US$280 million.
ABC Technologies (TSX: ABCT) is a manufacturer and supplier of thermoplastic, custom compounds, and engineered lightweight plastics used in the North American light vehicle industry by more than 25 original equipment manufacturers. ABC’s products are present on 75% of all light vehicles and used on each of the top 15 light vehicle models in North America.
ABC is organized into six product groups – HVAC systems, interior systems, exterior systems, fluid management, air induction systems, and flexible systems – and its services include manufacturing; design; engineering; material compounding; and machine and tool building. Toronto-headquartered ABC was founded in 1974 and has more than 10,000 employees at locations in Canada, United States, Mexico, China, Brazil, Spain, Germany, Poland, and Japan.
“Welcoming Plastikon Automotive into ABC Technologies will represent a significant step forward for our company,” said Terry Campbell, the president and CEO of ABC Technologies. “It amplifies our position as an industry leader in lightweighting and plastic injection molding, gives ABC a stronger foothold in the EV space, and most importantly, provides a new set of employees with opportunities to play larger roles in molding the future of mobility.”
Apollo acquired 51% of publicly traded ABC from Cerberus Capital Management for C$277 million in June 2021.
New York City-headquartered Apollo (NYSE: APO) has more than $598 billion of assets under management and more than $83 billion dedicated to private equity. The firm has acquired more than 350 companies since its founding in 1990.
Scotia Capital and TD Securities are the financial advisors to ABC, and Stifel is the financial advisor to Plastikon.
This transaction is expected to close by the end of the third quarter.
© 2023 Private Equity Professional | September 1, 2023
CES Power, a portfolio company of Allied Industrial Partners, has added on with the buy of Infinite Power, a provider of temporary mobile power and climate control equipment.
“We are very excited to add Infinite Power to the CES family,” said Mr. Landa. “Their reputation for superior service and quality equipment will strengthen our position throughout the mid-Atlantic region. Jay and his team offer significant know-how that boosts CES Power and our affiliate CES Technologies’ growth potential, and we look forward to working together.”
ACI Holdings, a portfolio company of Soundcore Capital Partners, has acquired Asphalt Solutions.
“Soundcore is dedicated to forming partnerships and is looking to acquire commercial paving companies whose founders value partnering with an experienced investor. Soundcore can bring technology know-how, operating expertise, and other best practices, helping unlock the next stage of growth,” said Alex Bues, a partner and head of deal origination at Soundcore. “We are actively seeking introductions to founders who share our values and core principles.”
Industrial tech investor Artemis Capital Partners has added two new members to its team with the hirings of Darcey O’Halloran and Cheryl Xiang.
Ms. O’Halloran joins the firm as a talent operating partner. Prior to joining Artemis, she was a vice president of human resources at Gryphon Investors. Earlier in her career she was a principal with organizational consulting firm Korn Ferry, and a senior consultant at Deloitte. Ms. O’Halloran has her undergraduate degree in international affairs and economics from George Washington University and her MBA from the University of Chicago.
Subway, one of the world’s largest quick service restaurant brands, has agreed to be acquired by Roark Capital at an enterprise value of $9.6 billion.
“This transaction reflects Subway’s long-term growth potential, and the substantial value of our brand and our franchisees around the world,” said John Chidsey, CEO of Subway. “Subway has a bright future with Roark, and we are committed to continuing to focus on a win-win-win approach for our franchisees, our guests and our employees.”
PAI Partners has agreed to acquire Alphia, one of the largest pet food co-manufacturers in North America, from J.H. Whitney Capital Partners.
“We appreciate the many years of support and partnership with J.H. Whitney, during which time we created Alphia, one of the leading pet food co-manufacturing platforms in the world,” said David McLain, the CEO of Alphia. “PAI is committed to our ongoing vision for growth and shares the common values of innovation, food safety and industry leadership.”
“We are excited to announce our investment in Alphia, which represents our second platform in the U.S. We are committed to building the PAI franchise in the U.S. and look forward to our continued growth and success in this market,” said Maud Brown, a partner at PAI and the head of PAI’s United States team. PAI’s first major acquisition in the United States was the buy of Tropicana from PepsiCo in 2021.
Paris-headquartered 
O2C Brands, a portfolio company of Middleton Partners, has acquired Green Sprouts, a seller of baby products.
Southfield Capital has added Robert Root, an executive with more than twenty-five years of international operational and finance experience, to its investment team as a transformation partner.
“I’m excited to be part of Southfield and its unwavering commitment to transforming businesses,” said Mr. Root. “Together, we will continue to drive impactful growth and innovation across the portfolio.”
Roland Foods, a portfolio company of Vestar Capital Partners, has acquired ifiGOURMET, an importer and master distributor of products used in the bakery, pastry, confectionery, and ice cream industries.
“We are proud to support Roland Foods’ expansion with the acquisition of ifiGOURMET, and we look forward to continuing our partnership with Keith and the entire Roland Foods and AUI Fine Foods team as they continue to identify new strategic acquisition opportunities,” said Ken O’Keefe, a managing director at Vestar.
Keswick Partners has acquired Metal Tech in partnership with the company’s senior management team.
“We love supporting family-owned businesses like Metal Tech that have built scalable operations in industrial verticals we know,” said Chris Hart, a managing partner of Keswick. “Brock and his father built a great company thanks to the team they assembled and maintained. We look forward to continuing their legacy as Metal Tech enters its next phase of growth and development.”
Hauser Private Equity, a co-investor and fund manager, has added Hayley Long to its team as its investment development director.
“I am delighted to announce that I have joined Hauser Private Equity as their Investor Development Director,” said Ms. Long. “Their impressive portfolio, track record, and an esteemed board of directors have generated tremendous appetite for the funds. I am honored to work with an industry leading group of high-net-worth investors and build upon the success of Hauser’s distinctive co-investment fund model.”
“We added over 50 new investors in Core Fund IV, which closed earlier this year,” said Mark Hauser, the founder and co-managing partner of Hauser Private Equity. “Hayley has joined our team to contribute to and develop growth plans for future core funds as well as provide additional resources for our existing high-net-worth investors.”
The Capstreet Group has promoted Chas Richard from vice president to principal.
Mr. Richard has his undergraduate degree in finance and entrepreneurial management from Texas Christian University and his MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College.
Coalesce Capital has acquired Examinetics, a provider of occupational-health compliance services. Freedom 3 Capital, an investment firm that previously backed Examinetics, is reinvesting in the company alongside Coalesce Capital.
“We back management teams who are building the platforms of tomorrow,” said Stephanie Geveda, the founder and managing partner of Coalesce. “Examinetics has an incredibly high-quality business model, driven by megatrends around increasingly complex regulatory and compliance requirements facing businesses. Today, Examinetics reaches more than 3,000 clients in over 18,000 locations annually, and we could not be more excited to partner with this team to deliberately scale this business, further enhancing the range of customers they serve and the value they can deliver to them.”
Trive Capital and Epic Partners have partnered to acquire Pryor Learning, a provider of corporate training, credentialing, and educational content to small and medium sized businesses.
“Pryor has a rich history of being the go-to provider for business content that is easy to access, affordable, and effective,” said Mr. Riehs. “I am honored to lead the company at this exciting juncture in hybrid learning. I look forward to working alongside our talented team to keep innovating our offering and exceeding our customers’ expectations.”
“We are thrilled to partner with a leading training provider with digital delivery expertise, a diversified customer base, high quality management team, and leading content access,” said Chris Zugaro, a partner at Trive. “Pryor is a best-in-class solution for an underserved customer base, allowing its users to successfully complete mandatory training and employee upskilling. Our next phase of growth will include organic investments to enhance the customer experience as well as acquisitions that will build on our proprietary content base and tech-enabled platform.”
Highview Capital has acquired Safety Marking, a provider of highway and roadway markings.
“We are extremely excited to partner with the SMC team to support their continued expansion,” said P.J. Gilbert, a managing director at Highview. “Mark has built a first-class operation with a stellar reputation, and we look forward to investing in the next chapter.”
Bow River Capital has expanded its private equity team with the hirings of Gaurav Sharma as a managing director and Shayan Masoudpour as a director.
“I was attracted to Bow River’s private equity team because of its track record, entrepreneurial culture, and the strong partnerships that they forge with founders and management teams to build enterprise value,” said Mr. Sharma. “I look forward to working closely with my colleagues, our management teams and investors.”
“Bow River offers a unique opportunity to join an operationally focused team and build on my healthcare and business services experience,” said Mr. Masoudpour. “I’m thrilled to be part of the team and contributing to the platform.”
Align Capital Partners has made an investment in Global Guardian, a provider of Duty of Care related security, medical and travel-related services. The firm partnered with Global Guardian’s senior management team which includes experienced former military and federal security personnel, and business professionals.
“Global Guardian’s differentiated model has led to strong client adoption and driven tremendous growth over the past decade,” said Dale Buckner, a co-founder and CEO of Global Guardian. “As we planned for future expansion, it was the right time in our company’s evolution to find a strategic growth investor. Our partnership with ACP will allow for on-going investment in the resources and technology needed to support our clients with the highest degree of care to safeguard their assets from continually evolving global threats.”
“The team at Global Guardian is providing truly mission-critical services to its customers and is gaining share in the market based on the company’s relentless dedication to providing a highly reliable, full-service model,” said Chris Jones, the managing partner of ACP. “We’re eager to build upon this strong foundation by leveraging ACP’s operating and growth resources, including the evaluation of add-on acquisitions early in our partnership.”
ACP invests from $20 million to $60 million in North American-based companies that have from $3 million to $15 million of EBITDA and enterprise values of up to $150 million. Sectors of interest include software and tech-enabled services, professional business services, industrial services, specialty manufacturing and specialty distribution. ACP has offices in Dallas and Cleveland.
GEM Manufacturing, a portfolio company of CORE Industrial Partners, has acquired sister companies Coining Manufacturing and Precision Machine Products. The two companies provide specialty stamping and machining services.
Chicago-based