New York, NY (November 5, 2003) -- KPS Special Situations Fund II announced today that it has acquired the stock and related assets of Speedline Technologies, Inc. from Cookson Group, plc for a total consideration of approximately $10 million. Speedline's management will continue to manage the company, under the Speedline Technologies name, following the acquisition.
Based in Franklin, MA, Speedline is a leading global producer of manufacturing equipment and services for the printed circuit board and semiconductor packaging industries. Speedline's four core product lines - MPM®, Electrovert®, Accel®, and Camalot® -- and its Protect services together provide a comprehensive product and service line for customer's Surface Mount Technology (SMT) and Semiconductor Packaging requirements. Speedline has the largest installed base in the SMT industry and its clients include many of the world's blue-chip electronics companies.
KPS acquired the stock and related assets of Speedline Technologies, Inc. through a newly formed company. KPS will invest substantial capital in the new company to fund working capital requirements at Speedline. KPS will use its operational expertise to implement a strategy designed to improve the performance of the company, capitalizing on its strong brands and leadership positions in the markets that it serves.
"We are excited about the potential of the Speedline business and being involved in its emergence as a vibrant independent company," said David Shapiro, a Founding and Managing Principal of KPS. "This is a company with a premier global franchise operating in a challenging industry environment and we are confident that with a solid financial foundation and our operational and management expertise that Speedline is positioned for rapid growth in a recovering economy."
Speedline's President, Pierre de Villemejane, commented, "KPS' commitment to Speedline validates the quality of our assets, management and employees. KPS has the financial resources to make a significant investment in Speedline, giving us the opportunity to continue developing world-class products and services. We will emerge from this process with a well capitalized balance sheet and the financial strength to withstand a prolonged market recession, but also well positioned for long-term growth in a competitive capital equipment market."
About Speedline Technologies
Speedline Technologies is the global value leader for single source process expertise, solutions, and service to the PCB assembly industry. The company sells five, best-in-class brands - ACCEL microelectronics cleaning, CAMALOT dispensing and conformal coating systems, ELECTROVERT wave soldering, reflow soldering, and cleaning equipment, MPM stencil and wafer bump printing systems, and PROTECT global services, support, and training solutions. For more information, visit us at www.speedlinetech.com.
About KPS Capital Partners
KPS, through its affiliated management entities, is the manager of the KPS Special Situations Funds, a family of investment funds with approximately $21.4 billion of assets under management (as of December 31, 2023). For over three decades, the Partners of KPS have worked exclusively to realize significant capital appreciation by making controlling equity investments in manufacturing and industrial companies across a diverse array of industries, including basic materials, branded consumer, healthcare and luxury products, automotive parts, capital equipment and general manufacturing. KPS creates value for its investors by working constructively with talented management teams to make businesses better, and generates investment returns by structurally improving the strategic position, competitiveness and profitability of its portfolio companies, rather than primarily relying on financial leverage. The KPS Funds’ portfolio companies generate aggregate annual revenues of approximately $20.3 billion, operate 222 manufacturing facilities in 26 countries, and have approximately 48,000 employees, directly and through joint ventures worldwide (as of December 31, 2023). The KPS investment strategy and portfolio companies are described in detail at www.kpsfund.com.
