Wynnchurch Capital Invests in Ladish Valves, Smith Valves and AIT Brands

ROSEMONT, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--LPW Group (“LPW”), a Wynnchurch Capital, L.P. (“Wynnchurch”) portfolio company and the parent company of Penn Machine and Western Flange, announced the acquisition of El Mar Ventures, LLC (and its subsidiaries) and Advanced Industrial Technologies, LLC (together, the “Company”). Headquartered in Houston, Texas, the Company provides specialty valves, pneumatic actuators and gears used in chemical, petrochemical, LNG, refining, renewable, pulp & paper and other industrial applications. The Company goes to market through its four leading brands: Ladish Valves, Smith Valves, AIT and Diamond Gear.

“We are extremely proud of the customer relationships we have built by focusing on quality, service, lead times and highly customized products. Our partnership with Wynnchurch will allow us to accelerate growth while continuing to provide our customers with unique solutions in critical applications. The entire team at Ladish, Smith and AIT are excited to embark on this next stage of our Company’s evolution,” said Ryan Scott, President of El Mar.

Mark Bowie, CEO of LPW, said, “Ladish, Smith and AIT are leaders in the delivery of specialty valves, actuators and gears on a quick turn basis. Their products are highly complementary to our existing product offering of fittings and flanges. The combination makes us a one-stop shop for our customers with growth opportunities in new end-markets. We are extremely excited to partner with Ryan and the team and look forward to enhancing value for our customers.”

Greg Gleason, Managing Partner at Wynnchurch, commented, “Ryan and the entire team have done a tremendous job creating a very unique player in the engineered valve space. They have demonstrated a track record of significant growth and we look forward to future success with the combined platform.”

Piper Sandler served as exclusive financial advisor to El Mar and AIT.

About El Mar and Advanced Industrial Technologies:
Based in Houston, Texas, El Mar and Advanced Industrial Technologies go to market through four well-known, complementary brand names: Ladish Valves, Smith Valves, AIT and Diamond Gear. The Company specializes in engineered valves made with stainless steel, nickel alloys and other premium materials to withstand harsh critical environments. Products are found on all the leading Approved Manufacturers Lists and include gate valves, globe valves, check valves, ball valves, gears and actuators. For more information, please visit: ladishvalves.com, smithvalves.com, diamond-gear.com or aittexas.com.

About Wynnchurch Capital:
Wynnchurch Capital, L.P., headquartered in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois, with offices in California, New York and an affiliate in Canada, was founded in 1999, and is a leading middle-market private equity investment firm. Wynnchurch’s strategy is to partner with middle market companies in the United States and Canada that possess the potential for substantial growth and profit improvement. Wynnchurch Capital manages a number of private equity funds with $4.2 billion of committed capital under management and specializes in recapitalizations, growth capital, management buyouts, corporate carve-outs and restructurings. For more information, please visit: https://www.wynnchurch.com.

Wynnchurch is actively seeking investment opportunities for its $2.3 billion Fund V. In December, Wynnchurch acquired Appvion, a leading provider of specialty and high-performance direct thermal coatings. Other recent Wynnchurch investments include: Owen, a leading provider of critical infrastructure equipment, aftermarket parts and services; Premier Franchise Management, the largest U.S. residential pool-build and pool-service franchisor; and Trimlite, a leading manufacturer and distributor of residential doors and related door products.