Trelleborg to buy Minnesota Rubber and Plastics for $950M

In a move intended to expand its North American footprint in several business areas, Sweden-based Trelleborg AB will purchase Minnesota Rubber and Plastics in a deal worth approximately $950 million.

The cash and debt-free deal — announced Aug. 2 — is expected to be finalized by the end of this year.

"This is a step change for Trelleborg Sealing Solutions," said Peter Nillson, president and CEO of Trelleborg Group. "The business area will be as strong in North America as its already established position in Europe."

Nillson said in an Aug. 2 news conference that MRP complements and strengthens Trelleborg Sealing Solutions' position in the rubber product space, especially as it relates to medical, food, beverage and water-related polymer and thermoplastic components.

MRP, the operating name for Quadion LLC, has liquid silicone rubber molding, injection molding of plastics, rubber molding, overmolding, assembly and other services.

"The company is a very good fit with our own business within precision seals, and the transaction is expected to generate significant synergies in terms of lower costs and higher production efficiency," Nillson said.

Conversely, MRP will be able to leverage Trelleborg's global sales channels and "offer a wider range of seals to its existing customer base."

"All in all, this is expected to lead to extensive cross-selling opportunities," Nilsson said.

The MPR acquisition follows a deal announced earlier this year by Trelleborg to buy EirMed LLC, a Menomonie, Wis.-based medical injection molder. The Trelleborg, Sweden-based company has also invested in new prototyping capabiltiies.

Trelleborg signaled its plans to grow in North America through acquisition earlier this year when it named Heather Castleman as director of mergers and acquisitions for its Americas region.

MRP saw sales of about $262.2 million in 2021, according to Trelleborg.

Plymouth, Minn.-based MRP, with approximately 1,450 employees across four states and six countries, is owned by global private equity firm KKR, the seller in the transaction.

"Today's announcement is the culmination of a lot of hard work by our dedicated employees ... and KKR's shared ownership model has allowed all MRP colleagues to share in this success," said MRP CEO Jay Ward. "Joining Trelleborg is an exciting opportunity to expand our global reach while we continue to fulfill our commitments to delivering excellence and innovation for our customers."

KKR offers an employee ownership program at MRP, and MRP employees will receive cash payouts upon the transaction closing with Trelleborg, with amounts varying based on tenure and employment status. As part of the transaction, employees will receive pre-paid personal financial coaching and tax preparation services.

All MRP employees are expected to be retained, Trelleborg said.

Founded in 1945, MRP has kept its ear to the merger and acquisition rail throughout its history, analyzing opportunities as they present themselves.

The company acquired Primasil Silicones in March and Pawling Engineered Products of New York in June 2021, giving the company a greater presence in the inflatable seal and extruded solutions space.

MRP also recently opened a $6 million innovation center near its headquarters outside of Minneapolis.

"Minnesota Rubber and Plastics is well-known to us for being an innovative and customer-oriented company," said Peter Hahn, president of Trelleborg Sealing Solutions. "The company's new state-of-the-art innovation center enables accelerated product development and strengthens us in research and development and areas such as health care and medical."

This is the first significant step taken by Trelleborg since it announced in March it had reached a deal to sell its Trelleborg Wheel Systems unit to Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. Trelleborg said at the time it would look to build its Trelleborg Sealing Solutions and Trelleborg Industrial Solutions businesses through acquisitions in health care and medical; aerospace and defense; and automotive, especially in electric vehicles.

For more on the acquisition, see the Aug. 8 issue of Rubber News or visit www.rubbernews.com.