In a deal between two companies that distribute plastic products, Harrington Industrial Plastics LLC has purchased Aetna Plastics Corp.
The deal comes less than five months after Chino, Calif.-based Harrington was purchased by private equity firm Nautic Partners LLC.
Terms of the deals were not announced.
In the earlier deal, Nautic partnered with Harrington management to buy the firm, which was founded in 1959 and distributes valves, filters, pumps and tanks.
On July 22, Harrington and Nautic announced the purchase of Valley View, Ohio-based Aetna Plastics, in partnership with Aetna management.
Aetna Plastics was founded in Cleveland in 1946 by Paul Davis, a leader in the plastics shape distribution sector who helped establish the International Association of Plastics Distributors in 1956. IAPD's annual award for distinguished contribution to the sector is named the Paul Davis Award of Merit in his honor.
Paul's son Gary Davis took over as president of Aetna in 1975. He now joins Harrington.
"This merger is great for customers and for employees and offers us the chance to partner with a market leader and really focus on growing our business," Davis said in a news release.
Aetna Plastics had about 45 employees at its corporate office and warehouse in Valley View and its manufacturing facility in Mantua, Ohio. In October Aetna bought Cleveland Polymer Co., a plastic material supplier and fabricator with two employees.
David Abercrombie, president of Harrington, said the Aetna deal will give his firm a greater national reach.
"Coming on the heels of our $2.5 million investment to establish a distribution center in Fort Wayne, Ind., this investment speaks volumes of our belief in the region, its people, and its potential," Abercrombie said.
Harrington is based in Chino and has 55 U.S. locations.
Providence, R.I.-based Nautic Partners has been active in the plastics sector, purchasing sheet extruder and thermoformer Spartech LLC in October from Arsenal Capital Partners.