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April 18, 2026

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industrial cranes

Pfingsten Closes Second Crane 1 Add-On

July 31, 2018 by John McNulty

Crane 1 Services, a portfolio company of Pfingsten Partners since October 2015, has acquired Absolute Crane, a provider of overhead crane services and equipment.

Absolute Crane’s services include inspections, maintenance, repair, design and installation of new and refurbished equipment and parts for overhead cranes. The company, led by its owner and president Mark Lupo, was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Houston (www.absolutecrane.com). Mr. Lupo will remain with Crane 1 as the division manager of the company’s new Houston location.

Crane 1 provides services and equipment for industrial and commercial users of overhead cranes and hoists. The company’s services include inspections, maintenance, repair, design and installation. Crane 1 was founded in January 2007 and is headquartered near Dayton in Miamisburg, OH (www.crane1services.com).

The buy of Absolute Crane is the second add-on acquisition completed by Pfingsten for Crane 1. In January 2017 the company acquired Crane Service & Inspections (CSI), a provider of overhead crane and below the hook lifting device services and equipment. CSI is based near Dayton in Monroe, OH and has an additional service facility in Memphis.

“The acquisition of Absolute Crane is an integral piece in our strategy to create a national service organization focused on providing operational uptime, regulatory compliance and a better customer experience,” said Scott Finegan, a Managing Director at Pfingsten. “We will continue to focus on strategic add-on acquisitions that bolster Crane 1’s service capabilities and geographic coverage for its customers.”

Pfingsten invests in middle-market manufacturing, distribution and business services companies that have transaction values ranging from $15 million to $100 million, revenues from $20 million to $150 million, and EBITDA between $3 million and $12 million. Since founding in 1989, Pfingsten has acquired 124 such companies through five funds with total commitments of $1.3 billion. The firm is based in Chicago with additional representative offices in India and China (www.pfingsten.com).

“We are thrilled to add Absolute Crane to the Crane 1 family as it represents our first entrance into the rapidly growing Texas market,” said CEO Bob Vevoda. “We plan to leverage the principles of high-quality service, timeliness, and integrity that have made Absolute so successful to date to continue our aggressive expansion throughout the rest of Texas and the Gulf Coast.”

The buy of Absolute Crane closed on July 20, 2018.

© 2018 Private Equity Professional | July 31, 2018

Filed Under: Add-on, Transactions Tagged With: industrial cranes

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