TUSTIN, Calif.—Trelleborg Sealing Solutions is expanding its reach again in the U.S., this time on the West Coast.
One of five large businesses within Stockholm-based Trelleborg A.B., Trelleborg Sealing Solutions plans to purchase Specialty Silicone Fabricators Inc., a privately held producer of high precision silicone components used by medical technology original equipment manufacturers.
SSF is headquartered in Tustin and has production facilities in Paso Robles, Calif.; Elk Rapids, Mich.; and Tustin. It recorded sales of about $39.1 million in 2015.
Financial details on the transaction were not disclosed. The deal is expected to close in a few weeks, according to a Trelleborg spokeswoman.
A number of other details—including retaining SSF's management team, work force of about 200 and production plants—have yet to be determined, she said. “We need to finalize the acquisition and start the integration of SSF into Trelleborg Sealing Solutions first, but at this point in time we do not foresee any major changes.”
An official at SSF also said his firm would not be able to comment until after the deal closes.
Trelleborg acquired the company because it is a leading player in the high growth U.S. life sciences market “with a strong reputation, track record and an attractive base of OEM customers,” according to Claus Barsoe, president of Trelleborg Sealing Solutions.
SSF differentiates itself from its competitors “by focusing on advanced, challenging applications and by providing support and value to the customer from initial design—a similar positioning and approach to Trelleborg,” he said.
An international manufacturer of high precision medical silicone goods, the company also offers complete assembly and packaging services for original equipment manufacturers. The firm primarily serves and provides silicone-based combination medical products for the medical device and pharmaceutical industries.
Its Tustin plant—with four clean rooms, one of which is dedicated to API mixing—specializes in combination medical devices, assembly and packaging services.
The Paso Robles facility produces silicone and silicone-urethane hybrids of medical components along with a variety of other silicone-based goods. Its manufacturing capabilities include extrusion, molding, calendering and dip coating.
SSF's Elk Rapids site handles contract manufacturing and support services for molding, extrusion and dip coating silicone components.
Trelleborg Sealing Solutions—which has its U.S. headquarters in Fort Wayne, Ind., and has built a strong base in the country—gains a strong platform for future development and strengthens its position in attractive markets with the addition of SSF, the spokeswoman noted.
Trelleborg Sealing Solutions' Life Sciences group for the Americas is based in El Segundo, Calif., “and this acquisition will further strengthen our presence on the U.S. West Coast and the Americas,” she said.
She noted that the West Coast is a significant region in the Americas for major customers and manufacturers within the life sciences industry.