Unifrax Announces Acquisition Deal
Niagara Falls, NY, July 25, 2011 - Unifrax I LLC ("Unifrax"), the Niagara Falls, NY based manufacturer of ceramic fiber insulation products, announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Super Saffil Limited and Saffil America, Inc. (together, "Saffil") from Dyson Group plc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Saffil develops, manufactures and sells innovative, high-temperature polycrystalline wool materials to a global customer base. It has two main business units: Saffil Automotive and Saffil Fiber. The Saffil business has a rich history based upon its high-performance Saffil® High-Alumina Fiber and Ecoflex product lines. Saffil products are used in a wide variety of applications in both the industrial insulation and automotive emission control support mat markets.
The Saffil business is headquartered in Widnes in the United Kingdom and has manufacturing operations in the U.K. and South Africa as well as regional offices in the USA, Japan and China and sales representation in Brazil. The business employs approximate 300 employees worldwide who will be joining the Unifrax team.
David E. Brooks, Unifrax President and CEO, comments "Saffil is a business with a great reputation, a proud heritage and excellent people. The Saffil High-Alumina Fiber and Ecoflex product lines nicely complement our Unifrax product offerings. Saffil will significantly strengthen our emission control mat and industrial insulation businesses. We plan to make a substantial capital investment in the Saffil business to add additional capacity to support the continued long-term growth of the business. We look forward to working with Mark Briscoe, Saffil CEO, on the implementation of the Saffil growth strategy".
Julian Cooper, Chairman of Dyson plc, is confident the sale of the Saffil business will be good for Saffil employees, "Unifrax will be a great parent for the Saffil business. The markets served by Saffil are strategically important to Unifrax and Saffil's product family nicely complements the current Unifrax offering." Cooper added "Unifrax is prepared to make the investments necessary to secure the long-term future of the business. These would have been difficult for Dyson to make. We are confident the sale of the business to Unifrax provides Dyson shareholders fair value while securing a bright future for Saffil employees. "
Brooks added "This acquisition represents another positive step in the continued implementation of the long-term growth strategy for our Company. We expect the acquisition to close in the third quarter after anti-trust approvals are received."
Unifrax I LLC is a leading global supplier of insulation products that are used in many high-temperature industrial, automotive and fire protection applications. The Company has 17 manufacturing facilities in the United States, Europe, Asia and Latin America and employs approximately 1,300 people worldwide.
For Further information, contact:
David Brooks
Unifrax I LLC
2351 Whirlpool Street
Niagara Falls, NY 14305
716-278-3880
