waste collection

Kinderhook Industries has acquired Gold Medal Services, a provider of municipal, commercial and industrial solid waste collection as well as commercial recycling processing and brokerage.

Gold Medal has a fleet of over 100 vehicles and provides collection services to 6,000 commercial and industrial locations and over 150,000 residences in the Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey markets.  Gold Medal is headquartered near Philadelphia in Deptford, NJ (www.goldmedal.net).

Glen Miller and Jim Sage founded Gold Medal in 2014 after completing the acquisitions of Integrated Waste Services and Gold Medal Disposal and the company has completed eleven acquisitions in total. “We are very excited to partner with Kinderhook at this inflection point in the company’s history,” said Mr. Miller. “The recapitalization will enable the company to expand its service footprint in Philadelphia and South New Jersey, and build on our strong history of acquisitions.”

The buy of Gold Medal by Kinderhook was completed in conjunction with the formation of a new partnership with BioHiTech Global (OTCQB: BHTG), a green technology company based in Chestnut Ridge, NY, that develops and deploys waste management technologies. Gold Medal has entered into a management services agreement with BioHiTech (www.biohitech.com).

The buy of Gold Medal represents Kinderhook’s 32nd environmental services acquisition. “I am pleased to partner with Kinderhook,” said Frank Celli, Chief Executive Officer of BioHiTech. “Their extensive experience in environmental services and emerging technologies, coupled with their significant financial resources, make them a valuable partner for BioHiTech as we begin to utilize our proprietary technology to set a new standard for sustainable and cost-effective waste disposal in the United States.”

“Gold Medal has established itself as a leading independent collection business within the Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey markets,” said Rob Michalik, Managing Director at Kinderhook.  “We believe that our capital, resources and industry expertise will help accelerate the company’s significant market potential via both organic and acquisition-driven growth.”

Kinderhook makes control investments in companies with transaction values of $25 million to $150 million in which the firm can achieve financial, operational and growth improvements. The firm makes investments in non-core divisions of public companies, management buyouts of entrepreneurial-owned businesses, troubled situations, and existing small capitalization companies lacking institutional support. Sectors of interest include healthcare services, environmental/business services, and automotive/light manufacturing. Kinderhook was founded in 2003 and is based in New York (www.kinderhook.com).

Financing for the transaction was provided by Comerica Bank.

© 2018 Private Equity Professional | January 30, 2018

Blue Sage Capital has partnered with John Gustafson and Trailcreek Capital Group to form Frontier Waste Holdings in order to acquire Access Disposal Services and K2 Waste Solutions. Frontier will also acquire other companies in the waste services industry, particularly those located in Texas.

Access Disposal Services provides solid waste removal services to both residential and commercial customers. The company was founded in 2005 and is based in Hillsboro, TX and serves the city of Hillsboro as well as the market area between Waco and Ft. Worth (www.accessdisposal.com).

K2 Waste Solutions was formed in early 2015 by Eric Konik and Bill Killian to both acquire and start-up waste collection firms. In June 2015 the company acquired Greenline Waste and Recycling which provides residential waste collection and optional recycling services to Phoenix-area communities that are not provided with city services. Also in June 2015, K2 acquired Lake Country Disposal, a Menomonee Falls, WI-based provider of commercial waste collection services. In July 2015, K2 acquired Dayton, TX-based LT’s Garbage Service which provides waste and recycling hauling for residential customers in the Houston area.

As a result of these initial acquisitions, Frontier – headquartered in Dallas – is now a provider of municipal solid waste services to the municipal, residential, commercial and industrial markets.  The company is led by CEO John Gustafson, a veteran in the waste industry with prior experience in senior management roles at Progressive Waste Solutions, one of North America’s largest full-service waste management companies. Also joining the senior management team will be Tim Henderson from Access Disposal Services and Bill Killian from K2 Waste Solutions. The CFO position is filled by Jake Friemel who previously worked at Comerica as a Vice President in the bank’s Environmental Services Department.

“I am very pleased to announce the formation of Frontier along with our partnership with Blue Sage and Trailcreek,” said Mr. Gustafson. “Further, we are extremely fortunate at this early stage to add Bill Killian, Tim Henderson, and Jake Friemel to our senior management team. The collective experience of our management group and board provides an excellent foundation for us to grow Frontier into a leader in the solid waste industry.”

“We are excited to partner with John Gustafson and Trailcreek to form Frontier,” said Peter Huff, Co-Founder and Managing Member of Blue Sage. “John’s previous roles highlight his ability to build and grow a successful waste services business, and the team he put together has the experience and talent to help execute on our plans for Frontier’s growth.”

Blue Sage Capital specializes in growth, recapitalization and buyout financings of smaller middle-market companies based in Texas and the Southwest. Most of Blue Sage’s investments are in established, profitable companies with $20 million to $100 million of revenue and $3 million to $12 million of EBITDA. Blue Sage invests in a variety of industries, with each initial investment in a company ranging from $10 million to $15 million. The firm is based in Austin, TX (www.bluesage.com).

Blue Sage’s partner on Frontier is Trailcreek Capital Group, a Denver-based private investment firm led by Andrew Pozatek, its founder and Managing Principal (www.trailcreekcapitalgroup.com).

© 2017 Private Equity Professional | May 4, 2017

An investment group led by Post Capital Partners has acquired the solid waste operations of Waste Management (NYSE: WM) in Puerto Rico.  Joining Post in the investment group is 30-year waste management industry veteran Randy Jensen.  Waste Management will remain an investor in the new company, which is called EC Waste. The transaction also includes landfill and hauling operations in Alabama.

“An important element of the sales process was finding a new ownership team that understands the waste management industry from the bottom up,” said Waste Management’s Vice President of Supply Chain, David McConnell. “We are pleased to participate as investors in EC Waste and look forward to working with the new ownership team.”

EC Waste is a waste management provider in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, with fully integrated operations that include four hauling operations, two transfer stations and three landfills. The landfill facilities include two of the island’s three Subtitle-D landfills which are licensed to receive household waste, non-hazardous sludge, industrial solid waste, and construction and demolition debris.  EC Waste will be headquartered southeast of San Juan in Humacao, with additional facilities in San Juan, Caguas, Peñuelas, Humacao, and Mayagüez.

“We are pleased to continue working with our industrial and commercial customers as well as our major municipal customers in San Juan, Caguas, Humacao, and Mayagüez to provide high quality, environmentally sound services,” said EC Waste Chief Executive Officer Randy Jensen. “EC Waste has a talented and seasoned workforce, and we anticipate increasing employment opportunities in Puerto Rico as EC Waste invests in growth initiatives. At the same time, we will focus on simplified invoicing and enhancing the customer experience, while providing additional resources focused on expanding our relationships with existing customers and attracting new customers.”

Randy Jensen started his career in suburban Chicago on the back of a garbage truck at a small private hauling company before working his way up to facilities management, operations management, sales, and senior management positions at large waste management companies. He was a regional manager for American Disposal Services (ADSI) prior to ADSI’s acquisition by Allied Waste. Following Allied Waste’s sale to Republic Services, he served as Republic’s Area President for the Gulf Coast.

Post Capital invests from $5 million to $15 million of equity in companies with $10 million to $150 million of revenue and a minimum EBITDA of $2 million.  Industries of interest include business services; financial/insurance services; consumer products and services; healthcare services; media and publishing; niche manufacturing and industrial; and transportation and logistics.  The firm is making investments out of its second investment fund. Post Capital is based in New York (www.postcp.com).

Waste Management is a provider of waste management services in North America. Through its subsidiaries, the company provides collection, transfer, recycling and resource recovery, and disposal services. The company is based in Houston (www.wm.com).

Banco Popular de Puerto Rico provided debt financing for the transaction.

© 2014 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 5-7-14