Golden Gate acquires Tronair

Levine Leichtman Capital Partners has sold Tronair Parent Inc to Golden Gate Capital. No financial terms were disclosed. Houlihan Lokey provided financial advice to Golden Gate Capital on the transaction. Based in Holland, Ohio, Tronair is a maker and seller of ground support equipment for business, commercial and military aircraft.

PRESS RELEASE

SAN FRANCISCO, CA and HOLLAND, OH – Golden Gate Capital, a leading private equity investment firm, today announced that it has acquired Tronair Parent, Inc. (“Tronair” or “the Company”) from Levine Leichtman Capital Partners. Tronair will remain headquartered in Holland, Ohio and will continue to be led by its current senior management team, including President and CEO Harley Kaplan. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Founded in 1971, Tronair is the global leader in the design, manufacture, and sale of ground support equipment (“GSE”) for business, commercial and military aircraft. Tronair’s diverse and unparalleled range of high quality GSE product lines – comprised of over 1,000 SKUs – are used by over 300 unique aircraft platforms. Tronair is the market leader in its core products and market segments, serving leading aircraft OEMs such as Bombardier, Gulfstream, Embraer, Boeing and Airbus; fixed based operators; maintenance and repair providers; corporate hangars; commercial airlines; defense contractors; and military airbases around the world.

“Tronair has successfully differentiated itself through best-in-class engineering capabilities and a collaborative customer approach, resulting in innovative solutions that support safe and efficient aircraft ground operations. We are excited to partner with Tronair management as the Company continues to execute on its strategy to build the industry’s leading ground support equipment platform,” said Rajeev Amara, Managing Director at Golden Gate Capital. “Our investment in Tronair demonstrates our commitment to partnering with high quality aerospace and capital equipment businesses to turbocharge their growth and enhance their strategic relevance.”

Harley Kaplan, Tronair’s President and CEO, commented, “We look forward to working with Golden Gate Capital to continue our positive momentum in the marketplace – driving growth throughout our product portfolio by continuing to deliver value for our customers. With Golden Gate Capital’s operational expertise and financial support, we will be well-positioned to bolster our market leading position while continuing to deliver the high quality, innovative products and leading customer service for which we are known.”

Houlihan Lokey served as financial advisor to Golden Gate Capital in connection with the acquisition.

About Golden Gate Capital
Golden Gate Capital is a San Francisco-based private equity investment firm with over $15 billion of capital under management. The principals of Golden Gate Capital have a long and successful history of investing across a wide range of industries and transaction types, including going-privates, corporate divestitures, and recapitalizations, as well as debt and public equity investments. Other notable industrials investments sponsored by Golden Gate Capital include US Silica, EP Minerals, ArrMaz, Humanetics Innovative Solutions, Springs Window Fashions, ANGUS Chemical Company and Atrium Windows. For more information, visit www.goldengatecap.com.

About Tronair
Tronair, based in Holland, Ohio, is the global leader in the design, manufacture, and sale of ground support equipment (“GSE”) for business, commercial and military aircraft. Tronair’s broad and innovative product line of GSE, comprised of over 1,500 products, is used by over 350 unique aircraft platforms. Tronair is the market leader in its core products and market segments, serving leading aircraft OEMs (e.g., Bombardier, Gulfstream, Embraer, Boeing and Airbus), fixed based operators, maintenance and repair providers, corporate hangars, commercial airlines, defense contractors and military airbases around the world.