Equity funds help reconditioning sector

ICS LEADS CONSOLIDATION

ACQUISITIONS • FOLLOWING A NEW INJECTION OF EQUITY, INDUSTRIAL CONTAINER SERVICES HAS MADE TWO INTERESTING ACQUISITIONS OF ITS OWN IN RECENT MONTHS

FLORIDA-HEADQUARTERED INDUSTRIAL Container Services (ICS) has acquired the steel drum reconditioning and recycling operations of Michigan-based DeWitt Barrels and DBI Recycling. The acquisition for an undisclosed sum includes all the machinery, equipment and inventory at the two facilities, with the acquired businesses now set to become an operating entity of ICS. “The acquisition of DeWitt Barrels is yet another important step in our evolution as a full-service solutions provider,” says ICS president and CEO Charles Veniez.

“With the addition of DeWitt’s Marne-based intermediate bulk container (IBC) and poly drum capabilities to our already robust steel drum and distribution platform in the upper Midwest, we are now able to offer a full suite of

THE DEWITT FAMILY NAME WILL CARRY ON AFTER

ICS’S ACQUISITION OF THE MICHIGAN-BASED products to this very important marketplace,” he continues. “We are pleased to welcome the DeWitt employees into the ICS family and look forward to their help in supporting our mission to provide customers with the highest quality products, the most dependable service and the strictest environmental standards found anywhere in the industrial packaging industry.”

“We are proud to announce that our 124-year-old family business has joined forces with the ICS group of companies,” adds DeWitt president Peter DeWitt. “Along with my brothers Tim and Michael, I would like to thank all of our customers for their many years of support. Knowing that Jason DeWitt will remain with ICS as the facility manager of the Marne plant means that our long and proud family tradition will carry on under the ICS banner.”

MONEY FOR GROWTH The deal marks the second acquisition by ICS in recent months, having in August bought the steel drum reconditioning and logistics operations of Alabama’s Buckner Barrel Sales Corporation. “The acquisition of the Buckner Barrels businesses complements the ICS portfolio in many interesting ways,” Veniez states. “With the addition of Buckner’s state-of-the-art facility in Springville, Alabama, ICS is now able to offer top quality reconditioned products and commercial logistics services to a critical geographic area that was missing from our portfolio. The addition of the Buckner Barrel workforce and facilities into the ICS platform creates tremendous opportunity for our customers, employees and suppliers alike.”

These two acquisitions follow on from a change of ownership at ICS in April 2017. It was acquired from affiliates of the Aurora Capital Group by funds advised by private investment firm Centerbridge Partners. “ICS is a market leader in the North American industrial container reconditioning services industry and provides a differentiated value proposition to its customers,” says Centerbridge senior managing director Kyle Cruz. “We believe this differentiation is a foundation for further growth. We are excited to partner with [Veniez], his senior management team and the 1,700 employees of ICS to support the company in the years ahead.”

ICS describes itself as “the largest provider of reusable container solutions in North America”. Through multiple brands, the company operates a network of more than 50 strategically located facilities across 20 US states and six Canadian provinces. Striving to be “the supplier of choice for high-quality, environmentally-responsible container solutions”, it offers “unparalleled expertise with over 100 years of experience in the industrial container space and is focused on anticipating customer needs and exceeding expectations”. As such, the company provides customers with “the most complete container management systems available, including reconditioning, manufacturing, distribution, used container collection and recycling services for all major industrial packages”. HCB www.iconserv.com www.dewittbarrels.com www.centerbridge.com