Bertram Capital has acquired MSE Supplies, a supplier of materials, laboratory equipment, lab supplies, and analytical services.
MSE offers an extensive catalog of over 10,000 SKUs used in research and industrial applications. It specializes in advanced materials, laboratory equipment, and consumables. The company’s advanced materials portfolio features high-purity chemicals, metal powders, and single crystals used in battery research, catalysis, electronics, and materials science.
In battery research, MSE provides various materials, including electrodes, electrolytes, and separators, for developing lithium-ion, solid-state, and other battery technologies.
The company’s laboratory equipment includes lab furnaces, planetary ball mills, and glove boxes—sealed enclosures designed to safely handle hazardous or sensitive materials in controlled environments. MSE also stocks an array of consumables and lab essentials for daily operations, such as crucibles, milling jars, grinding media, and vacuum pumps. Beyond products, MSE offers a suite of analytical and consulting services, including material characterization and testing, to evaluate materials’ properties, composition, and performance.
MSE has more than 30,000 customers, including universities, research institutions, and corporate R&D labs across over 100 countries. The company was founded in 2015 by President Dr. Ryan Du and Dr. Sam Zhu and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
“We are honored to partner with MSE Supplies. The company represents everything we seek in an investment opportunity: category leadership, high growth, and an exceptional team,” said Sean Houseworth, a vice president at Bertram. “MSE’s co-founders, Dr. Ryan Du and Dr. Sam Zhu, saw a void in the market for delivering high-quality supplies and equipment to researchers with value-added services. With this partnership, we intend to leverage the capabilities of Bertram Labs, our in-house technology services team, to support this investment.”
“We are excited to team up with Bertram to continue to build on our successful growth path and innovate new, exciting products for our customers,” said Dr. Du. “Sean and the team at Bertram aligned with our strong company values and vision. Additionally, by introducing the digital capabilities of Bertram Labs, we believe we will further accelerate growth as well as improve our overall business processes and better serve our customers. We are thrilled to be part of the Bertram team.”
Bertram invests in middle-market business services, consumer, industrial, and manufacturing companies with revenues from $25 million to $250 million and EBITDA of $5 million to $30 million. The firm is headquartered in San Mateo, California, south of San Francisco.
The buy of MSE is the second platform and first business services sector investment for Bertram’s expanded focus on lower middle market businesses.
Aleutian Capital was the financial advisor to MSE on this transaction with the Aleutian transaction team led by Managing Director Ji Sang Lee.
© 2024 Private Equity Professional | September 27, 2024
