Financial investor Platinum Equity said Oct. 19 it's buying protective case molder Pelican Products Inc. and its 12 manufacturing plants from private equity firm Behrman Capital. Terms were not disclosed.
Los Angeles-based Platinum said it plans additional acquisitions for Torrance, Calif.-based Pelican, which uses injection molding and rotomolding to make high-performance cases, portable lighting systems and outdoor gear for the military, government, business and consumer markets.
"With a global manufacturing footprint and broad distribution network, Pelican is an outstanding platform for acquisitive growth with substantial opportunity in both its core markets and adjacent categories," said Matthew Louie, Platinum Equity's managing director. "We look forward to working with the company's management team and deploying our operational and M&A resources in support of the next phase of Pelican's growth and expansion."
Pelican also makes temperature-controlled packaging and shipping products for healthcare, clinical trials and the biopharmaceutical industry.
Pelican CEO Phil Gyori will remain with the company following the sale, Platinum said.
"As we move forward with the backing of Platinum Equity, I'm confident Pelican's growth trajectory will remain strong, and our products and services will expand to meet the needs of our diverse customer base," Gyori said.
Pelican ranked seventh in the 2020 Plastics News sales ranking of North American rotomolding firms, with $115 million in relevant sales.
New York-based Behrman had owned Pelican for 17 years.
Besides the manufacturing plants, Pelican has 17 service centers and 23 sales offices across 25 countries. It operates in Europe under the name Peli Products, S.L.U.
"For more than 45 years Pelican has built a powerful brand with a well-earned reputation among its demanding and loyal customers for making some of the most indestructible products in the world," said Jacob Kotzubei, a partner in Platinum Equity. "We are committed to building on the company's rich heritage and investing in continued innovation."
Platinum has other investments in plastics. In 2017, it paid $3.85 billion for Canadian equipment maker Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd.
Last month, it bought Petmate, a maker and seller of injection molded pet products that includes the former plastics firm Doskocil Manufacturing.
And in 2015 and 2016 it bought plastics-related businesses from Singapore's Broadway Industrial Group and Hong Kong's Ying Shing Enterprises Ltd.
Platinum has $25 billion in assets and 50 companies in its portfolio.