Capital Partners has acquired MicroCare, a manufacturer of fluids and tools used for cleaning, coating, and lubrication.
The buy of MicroCare was made through Capital Partners Private Equity Income Fund III LP, a $600 million fund which closed in December 2017, and in partnership with the company’s co-founder and senior management team.
MicroCare is a manufacturer, filler and packager of industrial cleaning fluids used in the electronics, telecommunications, medical devices, aerospace, and transportation sectors. The company’s products include printed circuit board cleaners, pre-saturated cleaning wipes, solvents, aerosols, dust removers and degreasers.
MicroCare began as one part of a larger organization, the Jones Family of Companies, dating back to 1956 when Robert Jones started a sales firm in West Hartford, Connecticut selling ultrasonic cleaning systems. The first MicroCare products were aerosol solvents for defluxing circuit boards.
MicroCare, led by CEO Tom Tattersall, was founded in 1983 and is based in New Britain, Connecticut which is about 100 miles northeast of New York City. MicroCare has three production facilities, four logistics centers, and its products are available from local distributors in 47 different countries.
“MicroCare is a leader in multiple, highly-attractive industrial end markets,” said Ed Tan, a managing director at Capital Partners. “MicroCare is a perfect fit with our approach of partnering with great managers and investing in a business with strong organic growth potential and attractive strategic acquisition opportunities.”
“I am excited to partner with Capital Partners because of the strategic value they add to make MicroCare more competitive servicing our existing customers, while we invest in developing new manufacturing capabilities for new products that address emerging cleaning needs in global industries such as fiber optics and medical device manufacturing,” said Mr. Tattersall. “Capital Partners’ focus on establishing a strong balance sheet through lower debt was a significant differentiator for our team.”
“We closed this investment in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis as our low-debt approach to private equity allowed us to move forward and the company has proven to be a strong, recession-resistant essential business, which should benefit from a growing global focus on cleanliness and the increasing importance of telecom infrastructure,” said Sarah Paquet, a vice president at Capital Partners.
Capital Partners makes control investments in small and mid-sized family and management-owned companies that have EBITDA of $4 million to $25 million. The firm utilizes conservative capital structures and its companies are typically capitalized with 60% to 100% equity. Sectors of interest include manufacturers, value-added distributors, and business services. Capital Partners was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.
Private Equity Professional | June 11, 2020
