STOCKHOLM—Swedish compounder Hexpol A.B. has acquired England-based compounder Berwin Group Ltd. for around $36 million, according to a June 3 news release.
The sale was led by company chairman Glyn Williams, who helped head a management buyout for Berwin in 1983. He and his family were the main shareholders in the company, originally founded in 1953.
“The acquisition is a very good complement to Hexpol compounding in Europe and broadens and strengthens our presence with rubber compounds in the U.K. market,” Ralph Wolkener, president Hexpol compounding Europe, said in news release. “Berwin expands our capabilities and capacities to serve our customers in a more efficient way."
Berwin Group includes Berwin Rubber Co. Ltd,; Berwin Industrial Polymers Ltd.; and Flexi-Cell (U.K.) Ltd., with manufacturing facilities in Manchester and Gloucestershire, England, has an estimated annual sales of around $58 million and has around 200 employees.
Hexpol said it expects the business to have a positive impact on earnings per share.
“This is a further step in expanding and strengthening the Hexpol Group with a further acquisition within our core business, Georg Brunstam, CEO of the Hexpol Group, said in the release. “Berwin, with its competence and capabilities, will fit nicely into the Hexpol Group and gives us a stronger U.K. presence."
Hexpol is a global polymers group with strong positions in advanced polymer compounds, gaskets for plate heat exchangers, and plastic and rubber materials for truck and castor wheel applications. Customers are primarily systems suppliers to the global automotive and engineering industry, construction industry, the energy, oil and gas sector, medical equipment manufacturers and original equipment manufacturers of plate heat exchangers and forklifts. The group is organized in two business areas, Hexpol Compounding and Hexpol Engineered Products.
The Hexpol Group has approximately 3,900 employees in 11 countries.