The Cook & Boardman Group, a portfolio company of Platinum Equity, has acquired OKEE Industries.
West Hartford, Connecticut-headquartered OKEE is a distributor of architectural hardware, hollow metal doors and frames, and wood doors serving customers in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Massachusetts.
Founded in 1947, OKEE has acquired three operating subsidiaries over the years: Pennsylvania-based Construction Hardware in 1965, Massachusetts-based Hardware Specialties in 1986, and Connecticut-based Builders Hardware in 2018.
“OKEE has long history providing exceptional service to its customers by meeting by providing high touch communication, unprecedented service along with dedicated project management teams,” said Sean O’Keefe, the president of OKEE. “We are excited to join Cook & Boardman as they transform the industry.”
The buy of OKEE is the third add-on acquisition completed by Platinum Equity since acquiring a majority interest in Cook & Boardman from Littlejohn & Co. in November 2023. The two earlier add-ons were Discovery Door, a California-based architectural door and hardware distributor in January 2024; and Arizona-based Lanmor Services, a provider of access control products, steel and wood doors, and security systems, in February 2024.
Cook & Boardman has a long history in private equity. Blue Point Capital Partners acquired the company in 2008, Ridgemont Equity Partners acquired the business in 2014, and Littlejohn & Co. acquired the business in 2018. Littlejohn & Co. maintained a minority interest in Cook & Boardman when it sold a majority interest in the business to Platinum Equity in 2023.
Cook & Boardman is a specialty distributor of more than 20,000 SKUs of metal and wood commercial doors and frames, hardware, electronic access control equipment and other specialty products. The company serves non-residential and multi-family markets including the commercial, education, government, healthcare, office and hospitality sectors from more than 70 locations across 23 states.
According to Platinum, Cook & Boardman is one of the nation’s largest and fastest growing providers of integrated security systems – including physical security, access control, wireless networking, low voltage cabling, audio/visual and managed information technology products. The company, led by CEO David Eisner, was founded in 1955 and is headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
“OKEE is a highly respected company in our industry, and we are very excited they have decided to join the Cook & Boardman family of companies,” said Mr. Eisner. “They will expand C&B’s coverage in the northeast and their team brings a wealth of experience to our continuing efforts to provide superior customer service.”
Platinum Equity invests in a range of industries including manufacturing, distribution, transportation and logistics, equipment rental, metals services, media and entertainment, technology, and telecommunications. Beverly Hills-headquartered Platinum was formed in 1995 by Tom Gores and over the past 28 years has completed more than 450 acquisitions.
© 2024 Private Equity Professional | July 2, 2024
