Alpharetta, Ga.-based Pexco LLC, a specialty plastics extruder, acquired American Extruded Plastics Inc. (AEP) and American Injection Molding Inc. (AIM), which operate from the same facility in Greensboro, N.C., as a part of a strategic growth plan.
Founded as an extrusion business in 1984 by Marshall Eakes, AEP expanded into injection molding about 10 years later to enhance its capabilities. It now has 25 years of experience in the process. That was attractive to Pexco.
"The addition of molded plastics to our existing base of core competencies aligns well with our ongoing desire to broaden Pexco's overall value proposition by providing integrated solutions to our customers," Pexco CEO Sam Patel said in a news release.
Pexco manufactures parts and components for custom applications in markets for industrial, lighting, traffic safety, fence, filtration and electrical insulation.
AEP and AIM supply a variety of markets, including life sciences and diagnostics, telecommunications, agriculture, automotive, construction, consumer goods and packaging.
Eakes expects the acquired companies to grow under Pexco for several reasons.
"Pexco's reputation, scale, and well-established history in custom extrusion creates an excellent partnership for our organization and for our customers, providing an outstanding platform for strategic future growth," Eakes said in the release.
Pexco has been growing by acquisition since 2009, and company officials say it has become the largest custom industrial extrusion company in North America. With an estimated $210 million in sales, Pexco ranks 22nd among pipe, profile and tubing extruders, according to Plastics News' latest ranking of North American businesses.
Pexco has been owned by the private equity group AEA Investors since 2018. The deal to acquire AEP and AIM represents Pexco's fourth transaction under their ownership.
"We are committed to the ongoing pursuit of acquisitions that fit our core objectives and enable us to enhance our suite of capabilities while expanding our geographic footprint as the largest custom plastics solutions provider in North America," Patel said.
In November, Pexco acquired Insultab Inc., a manufacturer of heat-shrinkable and nonshrink tubing products in Woburn, Mass., to expand its capabilities and reach new markets. A couple months earlier, in September, Pexco bought the fence products business of Polyform Inc. and transferred it to Tacoma, Wash., facility. And, earlier in 2018, Pexco acquired Custom Extrusion Inc., which is based in Sheffield, Mass., and has a manufacturing facility in Asheboro, N.C., to get a foothold in the Southeast.