Altus Capital Partners has sold GED Integrated Solutions, a provider of equipment systems and software used in the making of glass and vinyl windows, to The Beekman Group.
GED provides equipment, aftermarket parts, software, and services used in the handling, assembling, and sorting of insulated glass (IG) and vinyl window frames. GED’s customers include 18 of the top 20 window and door manufacturers.
The company, led by CEO Bill Weaver, has a 130,000 square foot manufacturing facility and headquarters near Cleveland in Glenwillow, Ohio.
Altus acquired GED in June of 2015 from Brockway Moran & Partners. “We have been fortunate to have partnered with Altus in strengthening GED’s growth platform over the last four years,” said Mr. Weaver. “The Altus team brought more than just financial resources to the relationship; they worked collaboratively with our management team on our growth strategy, demonstrating a strong commitment to our company’s success.”
Altus makes control investments in middle-market manufacturing businesses that employ technology and automation and have at least $4 million of EBITDA. The firm prefers to invest in companies headquartered in North America and east of the Rocky Mountains. Altus is based in Wilton, Connecticut with an additional office near Chicago in Lincolnshire, Illinois.
“We want to thank the management team of GED under the leadership of Bill Weaver for building and strengthening the business during our ownership,” said Russell Greenberg, managing partner of Altus. “This has been an important investment for Altus, and we wish GED much success in the future.”
Beekman acquired GED in partnership with the company’s management team and Jeff Reed, an advisor to Beekman on industrial services investments. Mr. Reed has over 20 years of industrial equipment manufacturing and services experience. From 2014 to 2019 he was the chairman, president and chief executive officer of CCPI, an Ohio-based manufacturer of refractory materials and temperature measurement products used in the aluminum and steel industries. CCPI was acquired by London-based Vesuvius in February 2019. Earlier, from 2007 to 2014, he was chief executive officer of Duravant, a maker of equipment used in the food processing, packaging, and material handling sectors. Duravant is presently a portfolio company of Warburg Pincus.
“GED is a terrific platform and I look forward to partnering with Beekman and the GED management team,” said Mr. Reed. “I have extensive experience within the industrial automation and equipment space and have completed several past transactions with the Beekman deal team. I see many attractive growth opportunities for GED both organically and through acquisitions.”
“GED has a long track record of providing differentiated, highly engineered automation solutions in the window industry, and compelling ROI to its customers through labor efficiency initiatives,” said Jim Clippard, a principal at Beekman. “Their high market share speaks volumes about the effectiveness of their automation products, responsive service, and customer support. We are excited to support the GED team in the next phase of growth, both organic and through M&A, with the goal of building a broader industrial automation platform.”
The buy of GED is the third platform investment for Beekman’s fourth fund which closed in July 2018 at its $425 million hard cap.
The Beekman Group makes control investments in companies that have revenues from $10 million to $200 million and enterprise values of $15 million to $200 million. Sectors of interest include healthcare services, consumer services, and business services.
BlackArch Partners was the financial advisor to Altus and GED on the transaction.
© 2020 Private Equity Professional | March 11, 2020
