Fort Wayne, December 11, 2018
A Cleveland-based maker of welding and cutting equipment has expanded its portfolio of automated cutting and joining solutions with the acquisition of Pro Systems LLC and Coldwater Machine Co.
Lincoln Electric Holdings Inc. purchased the private companies for an undisclosed price. Its mid-December announcement of the acquisitions said they would accelerate growth of its cutting and joining business.
The Fort Wayne-based equity capital firm, North River Capital, acquired a majority interest in Pro Systems last year from its founder, Wayne Gibson.
Coldwater Machine also became a North River portfolio company and its services were promoted in partnership with those of Pro Systems.
In addition to automation integration capabilities, Ohio-based Coldwater Machine is a precision machining and assembly manufacturer, which serves diverse end markets using broad joining technologies such as laser and friction welding.
“We are pleased to welcome the Coldwater and Pro Systems teams into our growing automation portfolio,” Christopher Mapes, Lincoln Electric’s chairman, president and CEO, said in a statement.
“Their expertise and experience accelerates our automation strategy and expands our presence in attractive aerospace and appliance end market applications,” he said.
“Added scale, application expertise, extensive joining technologies, and assembly processes further differentiates Lincoln Electric’s advanced automation solutions and the broad array of solutions available to our customers.”
The acquired companies had combined annual revenues of about $55 million.