Bain Capital Partners to Acquire Apex Tool Group

Bain Capital Partners is to acquire tools manufacturer Apex Tool Group from Danaher Corporation and Cooper Industries. The transaction is valued at approximately $1.6 billion. Additional terms of the deal were not disclosed.

PRESS RELEASE

Bain Capital Partners LLC, a leading global private investment firm, today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Apex Tool Group (“Apex”), a leading tools manufacturer, from Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) and Cooper Industries (NYSE:CBE). The transaction is valued at approximately $1.6 billion subject to post-closing adjustments. Additional terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Apex, formed in July 2010 as a joint venture between Danaher and Cooper, is one of the largest global producers of industrial hand and power tools, tool storage, drill chucks, chain, and electronic soldering products for industrial, commercial and demanding do-it-yourself applications. Based in Sparks, Maryland, the company serves a variety of markets, including automotive, aerospace, electronics, energy, hardware, industrial, and consumer retail. Apex markets some of the top tool brands in the industry including Crescent® wrenches, GearWrench® ratcheting wrenches, Lufkin® measuring tools, and Jobox® tool storage products, in addition to being the principal manufacturer of several private label products for retailers. Apex has strong market positions in developed markets as well as in key developing markets, such as China and Brazil.

Apex will continue to be led by Steve Breitzka, Apex President and Chief Executive Officer, and the rest of the current management team. “With the support of Danaher and Cooper, we’ve succeeded in combining two premier tool manufacturers into a single world-class company,” said Breitzka. “We are excited that Bain Capital has chosen to invest in the future growth of Apex, and we look forward to partnering with them to seize the many opportunities in the marketplace. Bain Capital’s extensive resources and relevant expertise will help us continue to serve our customers well, strategically grow our market share and create additional career opportunities for our valued associates.”

“We’ve been impressed with the global platform of market leading positions that the Apex team have been able to build. In the market, Apex is known for its long tradition of quality and manufacturing excellence, and portfolio of well-known tools brands,” said Seth Meisel, a Managing Director at Bain Capital. “Building on this record, we look forward to collaborating with Steve and his team to drive the next phase of growth for Apex.”

The acquisition is expected to be completed in the first half of 2013. Barclays Capital Inc., Goldman Sachs & Co., Morgan Stanley Bank NA, RBC Capital Markets Corp., Citigroup and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. provided committed financing. Barclays Capital acted as lead M&A advisor to Bain Capital; RBC Capital also acted as M&A advisor. Kirkland & Ellis provided legal counsel, and Price Waterhouse Coopers provided accounting advisory services to Bain. Goldman Sachs served as financial advisor and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher served as legal advisor to Apex.

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About Apex Tool Group
Apex Tool Group, LLC based in Sparks, MD, is one of the largest worldwide producers of industrial hand and power tools, tool storage, drill chucks, chain, and electronic soldering products. Directly, and through its subsidiaries, Apex serves a multitude of global markets, including automotive, aerospace, electronics, energy, hardware, industrial, and consumer retail. Apex Tool Group markets some of the leading brands in the tool industry worldwide, including Allen®, Apex®, Armstrong Tools®, Campbell®, Cleco®, Crescent®, Erem®, GearWrench®, H.K. Porter®, Jacobs Chuck®, Jobox®, K-D Tools®, Lufkin®, Nicholson®, Plumb®, SATA®, Weller® and Wiss®, among others and manufactures several industry leading private label brands for large retailers and industrial distributors.

About Bain Capital, LLC
Bain Capital, LLC (www.baincapital.com) is a global private investment firm that manages several pools of capital including private equity, venture capital, public equity, high-yield assets and mezzanine capital with approximately $66 billion in assets under management. Bain Capital has a team of over 300 professionals dedicated to investing and to supporting its portfolio companies. Since its inception in 1984, Bain Capital has made private equity investments and add-on acquisitions in over 450 companies around the world, including such industrial, distribution and consumer retail companies as HD Supply, Sensata Technologies, SigmaKalon, Feixiang Chemicals, Trinseo, Gymboree, Toys “R” Us, Dollarama, Burlington Coat Factory, and Dunkin’ Brands. The firm has offices in Boston, New York, Chicago, Palo Alto, London, Munich, Tokyo, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Mumbai.

Contacts:
For Bain Capital Partners
Stanton Public Relations & Marketing
Alex Stanton
(212) 780-0701
astanton@stantonprm.com