Design Tanks, a portfolio company of Badlands Capital, has acquired the manufacturing assets of Black Hills Fiberglass. Badlands acquired Design Tanks in October 2013 in partnership with Aldine Capital Partners and Nordic Venture Partners.
Black Hills manufactures fiberglass-reinforced tanks primarily for the oil and gas industry and is located northwest of Rapid City in Belle Fourche, SD.
Design Tanks is a designer and manufacturer of liquid storage tanks made from fiberglass-reinforced plastic. The company’s tanks can be manufactured with capacities as large as 60,000 gallons and are used for liquid storage in the agricultural, chemical, food and beverage, municipal and industrial markets. Design Tanks is based in Sioux Falls, SD (www.designtanks.com).
The buy of Black Hills supports Design Tanks’ strategy to build a multi-site manufacturer of highly engineered fiberglass-reinforced plastic tanks. According to Badlands Capital this is a complimentary add-on acquisition as Design Tanks’ engineering capabilities and sales infrastructure dovetails well with the additional manufacturing capacity and geographic diversification of Black Hills Fiberglass.
“This acquisition allows us to expand our capacity in a way that also provides a better logistical solution to our customers in that region. It positions us for the future growth and continued job creation in South Dakota,” said Marty Comes, CEO and President of Design Tanks.
Design Tanks experienced a record revenue year in 2015 and the company expects to see continued growth in 2016. Badlands Capital will continue to look to grow Design Tanks through plant expansion and the acquisition of other tank manufacturers.
Badlands Capital makes control investments in middle market companies with revenue up to $40 million that are located in South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa and Colorado. Sectors of interest include highly-engineered manufacturing and business services. Badlands Capital was founded by Blaine Crissman and is based in Sioux Falls, SD.
Wells Fargo (www.wellsfargo.com) provided senior debt to support the Black Hills Fiberglass transaction.
© 2016 Private Equity Professional • 2-18-16
