New York, NY (September 7, 2011) -- KPS Capital Partners, LP ("KPS") announced today that, through a newly formed company, International Equipment Solutions, LLC and its affiliates (“IES”), it has entered into definitive agreements to acquire Paladin Brands Holding, Inc. (“Paladin”) and Crenlo LLC (“Crenlo”) from Dover Corporation (NYSE:DOV) (“Dover”). Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Paladin is the leading independent North American provider of engineered attachment tools for operator-driven equipment serving a wide range of markets. Paladin operates four business units, each focused on specific markets and products. Paladin Construction Group serves the construction, landscaping, agriculture and aviation markets under industry leading brands, including Bradco®, McMillen®, FFC®, Sweepster®, Harley®, JRB®, C&P®, and CustomWorks®. Paladin Demolition and Recycling, through its Genesis® brand, serves the demolition and metal recycling markets. Paladin Utility, through its Pengo® brand, provides augers and related tools for utility and foundation drilling markets. Paladin Custom Material Handling, through its Jewell® brand, provides custom excavator packages for demolition, forestry and material handling markets.
Crenlo is a leading North America provider of steel cabs and roll-over protective structures (ROPS) and electronics enclosures for customers serving a wide range of markets. In the operator interface cab segment, Crenlo serves world class OEM customers in the construction, mining, agriculture and specialty truck markets. Crenlo, through its Emcor® brand, also manufactures electronic enclosures. Emcor provides standard catalog and custom products for customers serving the technology, aerospace, government and energy markets.
Raquel Palmer, a KPS Partner, said, “We are very excited to create International Equipment Solutions. IES, by acquiring Paladin and Crenlo, launches as the premier international engineered equipment manufacturer, with an industry leading portfolio of brands and an exceptionally strong reputation for quality, durability, delivery, product support and product innovation. We intend to grow IES aggressively both organically and through acquisition in North America and globally. The combination of the company’s exceptional operational expertise and strong customer relationships, combined with financial resources provided by KPS, will facilitate IES’s global expansion, especially in China, India and South America.”
David Burdakin, President and CEO of Paladin, said, “Our entire team at Paladin is pleased to move forward under KPS and excited about their commitment to manufacturing excellence and to supporting our future growth. We will remain focused on providing our customers with industry leading products and unsurpassed service.”
David Kilburn, President of Crenlo, said, “We are thrilled to work with KPS to further Crenlo’s ambitious growth initiatives. As part of the IES platform, we look forward to expanding Crenlo globally and to further strengthening the relationships we have today with our customers.”
The closing of the transaction is expected during the third quarter of 2011 and is subject to customary closing conditions.
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton and Garrison LLP served as legal counsel to KPS and International Equipment Solutions, LLC and its affiliates.
About Paladin Brands Holding, Inc.
Paladin designs, engineers and manufactures attachment tools for heavy and light equipment with applications in the construction, agriculture, demolition, recycling, landscaping, aviation and utility end-markets. Paladin’s industry leading brands include Bradco®, McMillen®, FFC®, Sweepster®, Harley®, JRB®, C&P®, CustomWorks®, Genesis®, Pengo® and Jewell®. The Company’s products include buckets, couplers, trenchers, shears, augers, brooms, forks, grapples and many other attachment tools. Paladin’s customers include major international OEMs, independent and OEM-aligned dealers, and national equipment rental businesses. The Company has approximately 1,000 employees across 12 facilities in Iowa, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Carolina, Tennessee, Oregon and Memmingen, Germany. For more information, please visit www.paladinbrands.com.
About Crenlo LLC
Crenlo LLC designs, engineers, and manufactures cabs and roll over protective structures (ROPS) as well as specialty electronic enclosures. The cabs business manufactures steel frame cab enclosures and roll-over protection structures primarily for applications in the construction, specialty truck, mining and agricultural end-markets. The specialty electronic enclosures business, through its Emcor® brand, designs and manufactures vertical racks, consoles, kiosks, and other custom products for applications in the air-traffic control, aerospace, defense and alternative energy end-markets. The Company’s customers include major international OEMs, systems integrators, and various end-market customers. The Company has approximately 680 employees at two facilities located in Rochester, MN. For more information, please visit www.crenlo.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.
