Lightserve Acquisited of Illumetek
December 23, 2020
Lightserve has announced the acquisition of Illumetek. Lightserve is a leading provider of customized lighting distribution, maintenance, and retrofit solutions across various industrial and commercial markets throughout the U.S.
According to Lightserve CEO Kevin Franklin and President Bill Hurd, “The acquisition of Illumetek represents a unique opportunity to further strengthen our national presence in all vertical lighting markets, provide enhanced opportunities to expand our current technical service capabilities, and reaffirms our collective commitment to provide exceptional customer service and value over a broader footprint.”
Lightserve CFO Jason Brafford added, “The timing of this transaction closing in the current market environment could not be more important. With increased uncertainty resulting from COVID-19 our collective financial strength and further diversified business model positions the combined company to not only weather, but excel through, further market and economic turbulence.”
Headquartered in Stow, OH, Illumetek is a national industry leader in commercial lighting and electrical upgrades with a unique commitment to logistical expertise for enterprise-level program management. Additional specialties include reactive and preventative maintenance, electrical rollouts and installations, lighting and HVAC controls, IoT initiatives, and labor only management. Illumetek is also an award-winning participant in utility incentive programs, filing all customer rebates and returning 100% of those dollars back to the customer.
The Lighting Quotient Acquires Electrix’s Architectural Lighting Business
West Haven, CT [11/30/2020] – Sylvan R. Shemitz Designs, LLC, doing business as The Lighting Quotient® , the maker of Elliptipar® and Tambient® lighting products, has acquired the operating assets and products of Electrix, LLC’s architectural lighting business, including the Electrix® brand, strengthening The Lighting Quotient’s position in the LED lighting market and enhancing its manufacturing operations in Connecticut.
“We are adding highly skilled engineering capacity and integrating strong manufacturing capabilities in order to add breadth and depth to our portfolio of innovative high-performance luminaires,” said Allison Schieffelin, CEO. “In addition, Electrix is a brand known for innovative indoor and outdoor linear and in-grade luminaires. Electrix products from development partnerships and marketing agreements are the subject of ongoing discussions in the US and Europe.”
The additional manufacturing capabilities will improve capacity and flexibility for delivery of quality products as customers expect from The Lighting Quotient. Andy Novotny, COO, said, “we will execute production immediately in order to provide uninterrupted service and delivery for customers and we will strategically optimize the output of high integrity products.”
Dwight Kitchen, President of Electrix, added, “we are capitalizing on this opportunity to enhance the visibility of Electrix in the marketplace. We will accelerate our product development and offer a wider selection of fixtures to satisfy customer demand.”
The Lighting Quotient’s lighting fixtures and electronic controls solutions are used in commercial and residential projects, regularly featured in offices, hotels and restaurants, universities, museums, houses of worship, facades
and monuments worldwide. The Lighting Quotient’s products are actively utilized in infrastructure projects including architectural bridges, airports and transportation terminals.
Cree LED Sold Smart Global holdings
Cree, Inc. (Nasdaq: CREE) today announced that the Company has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its LED Products business unit (“Cree LED”) to SMART Global Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: SGH) for up to $300 million, including fixed upfront and deferred payments and contingent consideration.
Under the terms of the agreement, which has been approved by the Company’s board of directors, Cree expects to receive an initial cash payment of $50 million upon closing and $125 million to be paid upon maturity of a seller note issued by SMART to Cree due August 2023. Cree also has the potential to receive an earn-out payment of up to $125 million based on the revenue and gross profit performance of Cree LED in the first full four quarters post-transaction close, also payable in the form of a three-year seller note.
“We are pleased to announce the sale of our LED Products business to SMART, which represents another key milestone in our transformational journey to create a pure-play global semiconductor powerhouse,” said Cree CEO Gregg Lowe. “This transaction uniquely positions us with a sharpened strategic focus to lead the industry transition from silicon to silicon carbide and further strengthens our financial position, which will support continued investments to capitalize on multi-decade growth opportunities across EV, 5G and industrial applications. SMART has a strong platform and a solid track record of successfully acquiring and integrating technology businesses.”
Cree LED has one of the industry’s widest portfolios of highly efficient LED chips and high-performance LED components and represents one of the strongest brands in the industry. SMART is a global leader in specialty memory, storage and high-performance computing solutions serving the electronics industry for over 30 years. Leveraging SMART’s diverse customer base and global operations, Cree LED will be well positioned to continue to deliver industry leading products.
“We are thrilled to welcome Cree LED to the SMART family,” said Mark Adams, President and CEO of SMART Global Holdings.
“As the leader in LED lighting technology with a highly respected brand and expansive patent portfolio, Cree has a track record of delivering best-in-class solutions and I am very excited about the opportunities that lie ahead for Cree LED as part of the SMART portfolio of products.”
The transaction is subject to required regulatory approvals and satisfaction of customary closing conditions, and is targeted to close in the first calendar quarter of 2021. Following the closing of the transaction, SMART will license and incorporate the Cree LED brand name into the SMART portfolio of businesses.
In connection with the transaction, Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC is acting as financial advisor and Smith Anderson is acting as legal advisor to Cree.
SolarOne Becomes Fonroche Lighting
October 15th, 2020
Fonroche Lighting America announced today that it is changing its brand name from SolarOne to Fonroche Lighting, as part of Fonroche’s acquisition of SolarOne Solutions in August, 2019. This shift reflects much more than a name change, according to company leaders. “We’re taking an exciting next step in our company’s transition,” says Niels Van Duinen, COO of Fonroche Lighting America. “We already bring exceptional value and reliability to solar street lighting. Now we can be an even more recognized player in our industry—disrupting and growing the solar lighting market.”
Leveraging the strengths of an international leader
Based in Roquefort, France, Fonroche has installed more than 100,000 solar street lights throughout the world. With its transition complete, the US division—based in Needham, MA—can leverage significant innovations and organizational strengths from Fonroche. “We can invest in innovation, including game-changing new battery technology, to raise the efficiency and reliability of our Smartlight street lights even higher,” says Van Duinen. “Along with our partners, we can provide field-tested expertise and responsive service to our customers. And we can take on projects and initiatives of any size, from local to international.”
Bringing solar street lighting to all
Fonroche Lighting America will continue to sell to its core customers—municipalities, federal and military facilities, tribes, commercial properties, and developers. “Our current customers and partners trust us to deliver the full promise of solar lighting,” says Ilze Greene, marketing director of Fonroche Lighting America. “Now we can explore opportunities to help new customers use solar street lighting to bring much-needed light to key areas, from parks to parking lots, roadways to tribal lands.”
Smartlight street lights offer significant advantages over other solar lighting options, according to Greene. “Our Smartlights serve as a smart, simple, and sustainable alternative to installing more grid-based lighting,” she says. “And they’re a much more advanced, durable and reliable choice over low-quality solar solutions.”
Fonroche Lighting is part of the Fonroche Group, a major player in the renewable energy industry, with extensive expertise in lighting, biogas, and high-temperature geothermal solutions. Its off-grid solar lighting division has installed more than 100,000 systems, including the largest solar street lighting installation in the world.
Fonroche Lighting America, the US division of Fonroche Lighting, develops and markets advanced Smartlight solar street lighting solutions for the North American market, including municipalities, federal and military facilities, tribes, commercial properties, and developers. These customers and more choose Fonroche Lighting America for the simplicity and reliability of its solar street lighting solutions, which deliver safety and savings today—and sustainability and resilience far into the future.
Luminii Acquisition of iLight Technologies
Luminii, a manufacturer of industry-leading specification-grade architectural LED lighting systems, has acquired iLight Technologies, an LED manufacturer specializing in patented LED application systems and exceptionally durable and flexible commercial illumination products complementary to existing Luminii product lines.
Founded in 2000, iLight has been a pioneer in the engineering of innovative LED illumination solutions that transform corporate and architectural environments with show stopping installations. Among iLight’s product lines are patented application systems that give iLight the ability to create highly distinctive lighting products that feature high lumen output, a smooth, even glow, and linear lighting systems that underscore impressive durability and flexible formfactors. In addition, iLight brings proprietary advancements in energy efficiencies with minimal in-field maintenance across the portfolio.
“The new and immediate possibilities iLight brings to Luminii and our customers are both refreshing and exciting as we continue to chart our growth,” said Jeff Parker, CEO of Luminii and lighting industry visionary. “iLight Technologies expands our product offering and standards for creating high-quality products, giving customers a broader range of options to design Luminii products into their projects. iLight also provides us with added strength and potential in outdoor product offerings that are unique to the market.”
iLight Technologies, under the leadership of its CEO Sean Callahan, also adds new color to Luminii’s client roster with a customer portfolio including notables such as Blue Moon Brewery, W Hotel, Kate Spade, Navy Pier, JW Marriott and a host of eclectic projects in renowned indoor and outdoor applications.
“At iLight, we cannot imagine a better partner to accelerate the growth and innovation our team has generated for our company and customers,” Callahan said. “When considering the transaction, we quickly gained confidence in Luminii as a force for bringing iLight products and technologies to life in new ways and multiplying our strong momentum. With iLight now in good hands, I am now eager to spend even more time developing and growing a new technology we began at iLight, our SpellBrite Click-Together LED Letter business.”
As Luminii’s third strategic acquisition within the last year, the transaction with Chicago-based iLight Technologies underscores Luminii’s determination to unlock new market opportunities and reinforce its domestic manufacturing and product capabilities as part of a bold expansion strategy. Luminii acquired two other LED lighting manufacturers, California-based Optic Arts and Canada-based Senso, in 2019.
“In pursuing this acquisition, Luminii followed a rigorous process for identifying particularly strong partners with high-quality products that align to our engineering design ethics, manufacturing, and operational objectives,” said Amy Bonder, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Luminii. “Along with complementary products, we create new centers of excellence at all levels of the business as iLight brings its unique expertise to the company.”
Luminii will also utilize and expand iLight Technologies’ manufacturing facilities in Cookeville, Tenn., helping to significantly enhance the company’s U.S. supply chain.
“At Luminii, we will continue to push the boundaries of lighting technology and innovation by supporting the advancement of all aspects of the business, through future strategic acquisitions, organic growth, and inventive new product development,” Parker said. “Joining forces with iLight now gives both companies tremendous opportunities for expanding market share and bringing highly unique products to the lighting industry, all to the benefit of our growing roster of enthusiastic and loyal customers.”
Parker said Luminii will continue to carry and produce iLight Technologies’ award-winning product brands with deepened investments in engineering and manufacturing support.
ABOUT LUMINII
Luminii is an industry-leading, specification-grade LED lighting manufacturer on a mission to enhance architecture delivering high-performance products in a simply brilliant way. We bring unique visions to life through highly modifiable solutions driven by innovation and delivered with simple processes from specification through installation. Whether you are an architect, designer, or contractor, we are committed to delivering premium lighting products and an experience that is efficient, positive, and memorable. Follow Luminii on Instagram, LinkedIn, YOUTUBE, and Pinterest for more information on products, applications and industry events.
Luminii is a registered trademark of Luminii, LLC.
GE lighting is sold to Savant Systems Inc
July 1, 2020
Savant Systems, Inc., an industry leader in the professional smart home space has announced today that it has completed the acquisition of GE Lighting from GE (NYSE: GE), creating GE Lighting, a Savant company. Financial details were not disclosed.
Bill Lacey, president and CEO of GE Lighting, a Savant company, said, “For more than a century we’ve been bringing the future to light as part of GE and today we couldn’t be more excited to continue our journey as part of Savant. Savant is committed to continued investment and innovation in the lamp and fixture space and their deep knowledge and expertise in home automation will help our business accelerate delivery of bold smart home innovation at retail.”
The headquarters for GE Lighting, a Savant company, will remain at historic NELA Park in East Cleveland, Ohio and Bill Lacey will continue in his current capacity. Under a long-term licensing agreement, GE Lighting, a Savant company will continue using the GE brand on its products moving forward.
Robert Madonna, Chairman of Savant and GE Lighting, a Savant company, said, “We are committed to ensuring that Lighting’s long history of industry leadership continues, while bringing exceptional value and reliability to retail partners and consumers. This acquisition has moved our company significantly toward our goal of becoming the number one intelligent lighting and smart home company worldwide.”
The Savant brand remains steadfastly committed to the professional installation channel for the home, and it will continue to invest heavily in the development of the most advanced products, solutions and services for this market.
About Savant
Savant Systems, Inc., a Massachusetts-based company, is a recognized leader in home control and automation, and one of the fastest-growing smart home companies in the luxury and mid-markets. Savant’s powerful Pro technology brings together all of the vital pillars of the connected home – climate, lighting, entertainment, security and energy – together in a single application interface for the homeowner. This comprehensive whole-home control system, available through iOS and Android, delivers the premiere experience in all of home automation and is available through Magnolia Design Centers and Savant’s global network of Authorized Integrators. Learn more at www.savant.com.
LaMar Lighting is sold to Autronic Plastics
Autronic Plastics, Inc. (API) recently acquired LaMar Lighting, a Farmingdale, New York lighting manufacturer committed to producing high quality LED luminaires using state of the art components for commercial and industrial applications.
LaMar Lighting’s operations have moved to Autronic Plastics’ 100,000 square foot state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Central Islip, NY. They have joined API’s Clear-Vu Lighting, Clear-Vu Medical, and Clear-Vu Media divisions to manufacture innovative LED lighting solutions for the commercial, industrial, transit, life sciences, and construction product industries.
“We are excited to integrate a Long Island manufacturer with a strong lighting legacy into our advanced production capabilities,” stated Daniel Lax, Founder and CEO, Clear-Vu Lighting, “LaMar Lighting and its brands LAMAR LED, and Occu-Smart® have a history of success in the commercial lighting market. These products, combined with Clear-Vu Lighting’s MTLX, Flex SLS, and cleanLED will round out the national market’s lighting line card.”
Jeff Goldstein, CEO of LaMar and his team, have joined API to continue expanding on the legacy created with the LaMar Lighting customer base. “We are excited to have many of the LaMar staff joining the API product family,” stated Jeff. “We can continue to serve our long-term customer and sales rep base and utilize API’s resources to expand our collective product lines.”
About Autronics Plastics, Inc: Founded in 1953, Autronic Plastics, Inc. (API) has grown from a small plastic molding company to an industry-leading, custom injection molder known for its service, creativity, technology, and commitment to excellence. Today, API is a manufacturer for a variety of technologically advanced markets and expertise in processing high-performance engineering resins and manufacturing high quality, precision parts have made it the plastic injection molding OEM of choice. The ISO 9001:2015 certified facility is the home of API’s corporate headquarters, design & engineering, tooling, manufacturing, assembly, and distribution.
About Clear-Vu Lighting: Clear-Vu delivers innovative solutions using the most advanced technology for superior lighting quality, performance, and energy efficiency to clients ranging from municipalities, state agencies, and utilities to pharmaceutical manufacturers, large scale construction companies and start- ups alike.
About LaMar Lighting: LaMar is more than a manufacturer of LED and fluorescent lighting fixtures. We develop and deliver a customized product that tailors any lighting to fit your needs, whether in a commercial application or a residential setting. LaMar Lighting is committed to producing high quality LED luminaires using state of the art components, and we’re proud to say we are “Made in the USA.”
WESCO Finished the Acquisition of Anixter
June 22, 2020
WESCO International, Inc. (NYSE: WCC), a leading provider of business-to-business (B2B) distribution, logistics services and supply chain solutions, announced it has completed its merger with Anixter International Inc., creating a premier, industry-leading global B2B distribution and supply chain solutions company.
Upon completion of the merger, Anixter became a wholly owned subsidiary of WESCO International. Anixter’s shares ceased trading prior to the market open on June 22, 2020, and each share of Anixter common stock has been converted in the merger into the right to receive $72.82 in cash (without interest), 0.2397 shares of WESCO common stock, and preferred stock consideration consisting of 0.6356 depositary shares, each whole share representing a fractional interest in WESCO’s newly created 10.625% Series A Fixed-Rate Reset Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock. Based on the 10-day volume weighted average price of WESCO common stock on the NYSE as of the end of trading on June 17, 2020, and valuing the depositary shares based on the value of the underlying preferred stock, total consideration per share of Anixter common stock was $97.93. The newly issued shares of WESCO common and depositary shares will commence trading on the New York Stock Exchange today, June 22, 2020, with the depositary shares trading under ticker symbol WCC PR A.
John Engel, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer, said, “Today marks a significant milestone for WESCO and Anixter. In combining two industry leaders with successful track records, we are creating the premier electrical, communications and utility distribution and supply chain solutions company in the world. This is a transformational combination that provides substantial value creation for our customers, supplier partners, employees, investors, and the communities in which we operate. WESCO’s capabilities in industrial, construction, and utility matched with Anixter’s expertise in communications, security, and wire and cable create an industry-leading line-up for our customers. As we bring together our complementary products, services, and technologies, there are significant cross-selling opportunities that enable us to offer more solutions, to more customers, in more locations around the world. This is a growth play which will capitalize on the accelerating secular trends of electrification, increased bandwidth demand driven by higher voice, data, video and mobile usage, and the combination and digitization of our B2B value chain.”
“I would like to welcome all WESCO and Anixter team members to our new combined company and thank them for their outstanding dedication and service. We have been executing a detailed, rigorous and process-oriented integration planning effort over the past few months. The high degree of collaboration among and across the integration teams has been inspiring and underscores the strong cultural alignment between WESCO and Anixter. We are taking advantage of the opportunity to leverage the best talent and ideas of two successful organizations in forming our new, world class enterprise. Our recently announced senior management team is excited and confident we will deliver our committed synergies, above-market growth, and industry-leading margins and returns. I look forward to reporting on our progress and the success of this transformational combination in the months ahead.”
Metalogalva Acquires Lighting Division of Europoles
Mar 31th 2020
Good news for the employees of Europoles GmbH & Co. KG with headquarters in Neumarkt. Following the sale of the infrastructure division of Europe’s leading manufacturer of poles, masts, and towers in April 2019, a significant step towards its renovation and continuation has now been taken, as the entire remaining lighting division has been sold to an acquirer. Following the decision of the creditors’ committee, the strategic investor Metalogalva has been awarded the contract for the entire German and foreign sites. The Portuguese company is an internationally active manufacturer of steel structures for road and rail transport, telecommunications and the energy sector, among others. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.
Thanks to the employees
“We are very pleased to have been able to find a sustainable solution for the remaining lighting division, as well,” says Alexander Reus, Managing Director of Europoles GmbH & Co KG. “Our special thanks go to the employees, whose tireless efforts have made a very significant contribution to the success of the restructuring. It was only with their support that we were able to continue the business despite insolvency, and to lay the foundation for the entry of the new investor”. The last joint step here was the move to new premises at Nürnberger Straße 48 in Neumarkt.
Metalogalva is pleased to reinforce its position in a competitive marketplace such as Germany. The transaction will increase the company’s market share in the country and make its supply chain more agile. Consequently, Metalogalva has reached a market leading position as the European leader in the lightning sector.
Implementation and completion by Autumn 2020
In their capacity as managing directors of the company’s self-administration, attorneys Vincenz von Braun and Alexander Reus, both from Anchor Management GmbH, designed the concept for the restructuring of the group of companies, consistently implemented the restructuring measures and now also sold the remaining lighting division, thus securing its continued existence. Sönke Schulz and his team from the M&A consulting firm Sigma Corporate Finance GmbH (SIGMA) were instrumental in supporting the self-administration. In a Europe-wide structured bidding process, the SIGMA team had managed all sales activities of the companies in Germany and abroad.
At a staff meeting, the employees were informed about the successful sale and the investor was introduced. Due to the current travel restrictions in Europe, a video conference was held with the head office in Trofa, Portugal.
Throughout the entire self-administration, lawyer Dr. Harald Schwartz supervised and constructively accompanied the restructuring in the interest of the creditors. The final transfer to the purchaser Metalogalva is expected to be completed until autumn 2020. “The proceedings are also very complex in legal terms due to the numerous domestic and foreign sites, so that we must expect a longer transition phase,” says restructuring expert Vincenz von Braun.
Loss of a major order triggers insolvency.
The Europoles GmbH & Co. KG had to file for judicial insolvency proceedings as a debtor in possession in October 2018, after a major order with a total volume of over 110 million euros was suddenly withdrawn by the client. Due to the loss of the major order, the group of companies, which had already invested considerable funds in the processing of the order, faced financial difficulties.
Successful future solutions for parts of the company
In the course of self-administration, other parts of the company and subsidiaries of Europoles had already been successfully sold off in advance. In April 2019, the Infrastructure Division, including its subsidiary Europoles Suisse GmbH, was sold to the Berching-based family-owned company FUCHS & Söhne GmbH. The subsidiary Europoles RMP GmbH in Lutherstadt-Eisleben went to the Kagelmann Group. In addition, Europoles Kromiss sp.z.o.o in Poland, also belonging to the Europoles Group, and the majority shareholding in Europoles Middle East LLC were sold to investors.
About Metalogalva
Founded in 1971, Metalogalva – Irmãos Silvas, SA is the oldest VigentGroup company, the national leader in its main activity: the field of steel engineering and protection. In addition, it is also one of the main European players in the production of public lighting columns and other connected structures areas, such as energy transport, renewables, telecommunications, highways, railways, and hot dip galvanizing.
Metalogalva’s vision is recognized for its excellence and incessant improvement. Consequently, the company has been recognized for the quality of its production, for its technological capacity and innovation. It is important to underline Metalogalva’s prodigious international expansion, as it is currently present more than 10 countries (Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, Belgium, United Kingdom, Algeria, Ukraine, Senegal, Brazil, and Saudi Arabia). The company’s industrial units are located in Algeria, Brazil, France, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine and Portugal.
Further information is available at: www.metalogalva.pt/en/
About anchor Management GmbH and anchor Rechtsanwälte
anchor Management GmbH and anchor Rechtsanwälte are a hybrid of management consultancy and law firm. The anchor team consists of 16 partners and around 120 employees at 12 locations in Augsburg, Braunschweig, Düsseldorf, Hanover, Hildesheim, Cologne, Mannheim, Munich, Regensburg, Stuttgart, Ulm and Weilheim i.OB.
anchor is specialized in insolvency administration and insolvency law consulting. In the past, the law firm and management consultancy have assisted and restructured numerous larger companies both outside and in insolvency. In doing so, anchor brings the entire experience and competence as insolvency specialists and business management know-how to the consultancy.
Ecosense Acquires Assets From Soraa
March 2020
Ecosense®, a leading LED technology company, announced today that it has acquired assets from Soraa, a designer and manufacturer of full-spectrum LED lamps based in Fremont, California.
Under the terms of the deal, Ecosense acquires the Soraa name, intellectual property and lamps, including the company’s signature VIVID, BRILLIANT™ HL and HEALTHY™ product lines. This move is the first foray into the professional lamp category for Ecosense.
“This acquisition accelerates our strategy into the next wave of lighting,” explains Mark Reynoso, CEO of Ecosense. “Soraa has an unparalleled reputation for beam and spectral quality. Their intellectual property and technology portfolio—including ZEROBLUE™, full spectrum, and healthy lighting—highly complements our own intellectual property and related technologies. We will prioritize enhancing and accelerating their antibacterial technology to market.”
Soraa was co-founded by Shuji Nakamura, a 2014 Nobel Laureate in Physics for his invention of the blue LED. About the acquisition Nakamura said, “Soraa is a pioneer in full spectrum and circadian lighting. Combining with Ecosense, we significantly expand our leadership and intellectual property rights in these and related fields. We are excited about our next phase of growth together.”
To maintain consistency and quality of service, Soraa will continue to operate as its own distinct brand.
About Ecosense
Ecosense is an LED technology company. Recognized by the likes of Red Dot for innovation and design, as well as Inc. 500 and Deloitte Technology Fast 500 for consistently making their fastest growing companies lists, we serve a creative class of artists and designers and have been fortunate to light the most coveted spaces on earth. Ecosense strives to invent, inspire, and reshape how the world understands and interacts with artificial light.
www.ecosenselighting.com/
About Soraa
Since 2008, Soraa has delivered a unique LED lighting experience with the singular purpose of leading the world in superior lighting products where color matters: high-end retail, world-class art museums, premium restaurants and hotels. Pioneering LEDs built from pure gallium nitride substrates (GaN on GaNTM), Soraa full-spectrum lamps and fixtures deliver superior color rendering and beam characteristics compared to others using LEDs created from non-native substrates.
www.soraa.com/
Signify Has Acquired Cooper Lighting Solutions
Signify has completed the acquisition of Cooper Lighting Solutions from Eaton. The transaction strengthens Signify’s market position and better positions the company to capture growth in the North American lighting market. Signify is a global leader in lighting for professionals and consumers and lighting for the Internet of Things. The company’s Philips products, Interact connected lighting systems, and data-enabled
services aim to deliver business value and transform buildings and public spaces.
Eric Rondolat, CEO of Signify, said, “We’re very excited to welcome Cooper Lighting to Signify and to start working together. Since the announcement of the transaction on October 15, the teams have been working hard to prepare the integration plans and are now ready to move fast to realize the synergies. Together, we will drive innovation, advance in connected lighting and systems, creating significant value for our customers. And it will give us the scale and operational efficiencies to make our offerings even more competitive.”
Cooper Lighting Solutions President, Kraig Kasler, said, “We could not be more excited to officially become part of the world leader in lighting. Bringing together two businesses that share a vision on where the industry is headed and a purpose to drive sustainable growth in North America and beyond, will result in significant benefits for our customers, our employees and all our stakeholders.” Kasler will continue to lead the Cooper Lighting Solutions business unit within Signify.
A strategic transaction to strengthen Signify’s position in the North American professional lighting market
This acquisition is fully in line with Signify’s strategy to expand in attractive markets, enhancing Signify’s position in the North American market and improving the business mix.
Together, the two businesses will be better positioned to benefit from the growing USD 12 billion professional lighting market in North America, driven by the continued conversion to LED and the increased demand for connected lighting systems and controls.
Signify and Cooper Lighting will maintain separate front offices: sales forces, agent networks, product and brand portfolios, marketing and product development teams. Both businesses will be able to strengthen their respective product portfolios, benefitting from an increased power of innovation as well as more competitive and cost-efficient offerings.
Signify acquired Cooper Lighting for US$1.4 billion on a cash and debt-free basis. Cooper Lighting, based in Peachtree City, GA, Unite generated¹ EUR 1,477 million of sales, Adjusted EBITA of EUR 150 million and EBITA of EUR 165 million in 2019.
Legrand Acquired Focal Point
March 3, 2020
Legrand, North and Central America (LNCA) announced the acquisition, subject to closing, of Focal Point, a Chicago-based privately held manufacturer of architectural lighting products.
This acquisition is Legrand’s fifth addition to its lighting sector. Legrand says it provides a high degree of autonomy to its lighting companies and supports Focal Point’s business leadership team in the pursuit of innovation and growth.
“Today’s acquisition of Focal Point aligns with Legrand’s strategy of investing in companies with shared vision and values, customer centric culture and focus on complementary market segments,” said LNCA president and CEO, John Selldorff, in a statement. “Focal Point’s strong brand, proven relationships and impressive product portfolio aligns well with our architectural lighting businesses and I’m confident this acquisition will expand not just Legrand’s portfolio but our capacity to serve new market segments and customers.”
“With this transaction, we will be able to leverage Legrand’s capabilities to deliver even more comprehensive solutions that will further our collective success,” said Peter Thornton Sr., founder and chairman of Focal Point. “We will continue to provide the superior service and high quality, innovative products the market expects along with the additional benefit of Legrand’s expertise.”
Following the acquisition of Pinnacle Architectural Lighting in 2016, OCL and Finelite in 2017, and Kenall in 2018, this operation will strengthen Legrand’s U.S. positions in lighting controls and solutions, with a range of specification-grade architectural applications in commercial buildings, energy-efficient lighting management systems, and innovative connected solutions.
Gerard Lighting sold to global giant, Schréder sees the light
Gerard Lighting Group (GLG) has announced today an agreement for the sale of the company’s infrastructure lighting division in Australia, Sylvania and Austube, to the Schréder Group, one of the world’s leading lighting solutions providers.
Headquartered in Belgium, Schréder has been operating as a family-owned business since 1907. It has over 2,600 employees in more than 35 locations worldwide, including Perth where it opened its first Australian subsidiary in 2015. Since then, the company has provided lighting solutions for a host of major infrastructure and urban renewal projects around the country.
GLG’s Sylvania and Austube businesses are Australia’s largest provider of lighting solutions to large-scale construction and infrastructure projects, with a significant portfolio of major projects both underway and in the pipeline. GLG is majority-owned by Bain Capital Credit and Investec which, through their strong support over several years, has enabled the company to maintain its position as the leading supplier in Australia and New Zealand of lighting solutions for the commercial, trade and residential markets.
In announcing the sale of the Sylvania and Austube divisions, Bain Capital Credit and Investec noted that “the strong strategic and cultural alignment between Schréder and Sylvania/Austube presented a compelling opportunity to realise strong value from one of GLG’s key operating businesses.”
GLG Chief Executive, Les Patterson, considers Schréder to be “a natural home for Sylvania and Austube for the long term,” adding “the two businesses have a lot in common including a long and proud heritage, a commitment to innovation, and leadership positions in their respective geographies and product segments.”
Werner De Wolf, Schréder Chief Executive, explains “Sylvania and Austube are great businesses to add to Schréder. Their customer relationships and market position in Australia are outstanding. Combined with Schréder’s product portfolio and innovation pipeline, and our joint passion for lighting solutions, we will be able to delight our customers.
“This acquisition will be a great example of Schréder’s “local strength with global reach” strategy and we are very happy to welcome the Sylvania and Austube employees to Schréder.”
Patterson added that the Sylvania and Austube deal was a good outcome for GLG, providing scope for increased investment in the Pierlite division, the company’s market-leading commercial and industrial lighting solutions business.
“Pierlite is an important part of the Group and, with the on-going support of our shareholders, we’re excited by what it can deliver going forward through greater investment in capability and reach in the commercial and industrial segment.”
Sylvania and Austube’s operations will be largely unchanged for the foreseeable future and will continue to operate under the leadership of Kaushal Kapadia with pricing and supply arrangements unchanged.
The sale process is expected to be completed in the coming months.
The energy-efficient lighting category has experienced a substantial amount of strategic acquisition activity for the past several years, and this trend should continue, according to TRISHA HANSEN and DAVID CUMBERLAND
Above lighting mergers and acquisition news are collected from Edison report.
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