In a deal that will pair the largest wood window manufacturer and the largest vinyl window maker, Bayport, Minn.-based Andersen Corp. has agreed to purchase North Brunswick, N.J.-based Silver Line Building Products Corp. for an undisclosed sum.
The companies announced the deal May 24. It is expected to close around June 30, pending regulatory approval.
Silver Line will retain its name and operate as a wholly owned subsidiary. The company's chairman and chief executive officer, Kenneth Silverman, will continue to head up the management team. No layoffs, plant closings or consolidations are expected, officials said.
``It's already a successful business. We want them to keep doing what they're doing,'' said Maureen McDonough, Andersen corporate communications director.
As a category, vinyl is continuing to erode the market share of other window materials.
Silver Line is coming off a banner year, thanks to a solid year in residential home construction and the replacement windows market, Silverman said in January.
Both companies are privately held. Forbes lists Andersen as a $2.5 billion company. Silver Line, a major supplier to Home Depot retail stores, has annual sales greater than $500 million, according to Window & Door magazine. The company does $190 million in extrusion-related sales, according to Plastics News' most recent ranking, and also does fabrication and injection molding.
Silver Line employs about 7,100. Andersen employs more than 8,000.
``Silver Line is the market leader in vinyl windows and is really a great fit with us,'' McDonough said. ``You look for a lot of things to cause some synergy. We have a lot of the same culture. Silver Line was a great option for us.''
Andy Carr, vice president of marketing and advertising for Silver Line, added: ``The combination of all our resources will greatly benefit both.''
Despite its status as one of the largest and most recognizable window manufacturers, Andersen doesn't have an all-vinyl product. However, Andersen has been working with plastics since the 1960s, offering a vinyl-clad window system called PermaShield, and more recently, a wood-plastic composite called Fibrex.
Silver Line Vinyl Extrusion Division operates plants in North Brunswick; Lithia Springs, Ga.; Marion, Ohio; and Durham, N.C.