Pfingsten Partners has acquired Crane 1 Services, a provider of overhead crane and hoist services. This investment is the 17th platform for the firm’s $525 million fourth fund.
Crane 1 Services (Crane 1) provides inspection, maintenance and equipment for industrial and commercial users of overhead cranes and hoists. Services include preventative maintenance, emergency breakdown response, modernization and upgrades. The company also provides new hoist and crane components used in a variety of applications including extreme duty and hazardous environments. New crane systems can include light “workstation” cranes to 
engineered crane systems with ½ to 100 ton capacity. Crane 1 was founded in January 2007 and is headquartered north of Cincinnati in Franklin, OH. The company has ten other locations in the Midwest and Southeast that serve the following metropolitan areas: Columbus, OH; Toledo, OH; Charleston, WV; Chicago, IL; Louisville, KY; Indianapolis, IN; Baltimore, MD; Richmond, VA; Knoxville, TN; Detroit, MI; and Cincinnati/Dayton, OH (www.crane1services.com).
“Crane 1 is an industry leader that maximizes safety, increases productivity and reduces maintenance costs for its customers,” said Scott Finegan, a Managing Director at Pfingsten. “The Crane 1 management team has an outstanding track record of growth through aggressive geographic expansion and new account development. We look forward to supporting the next stage of the company’s growth.”
Pfingsten Partners invests in middle market manufacturing, distribution and business services companies. Since founding in 1989, Pfingsten has acquired 106 manufacturing, distribution and business services companies through four funds with total commitments of approximately $1 billion. The firm is based in Chicago with additional offices in India and China (www.pfingsten.com).
“We are extremely excited to partner with Pfingsten,” said Crane 1 CEO, Matt Milton. “This partnership provides the operational and financial resources required to accelerate our growth at a most opportune time.”
Ropes & Gray (www.ropesgray.com) was the legal advisor to Pfingsten on this transaction. The Ropes & Gray team was led by private equity partner Neill Jakobe (Chicago) and included tax partner Aaron Harsh (Boston); finance partner Alexander Zeltser (New York); executive compensation & employee benefits partner Carrie Simons (Boston); business & securities litigation partner Nicholas Berg (Chicago); real estate & environmental partner Peter Alpert (Boston); and private equity associate Bill Donnell (Chicago).
© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 10-23-15
