Komatsu America Agrees to Acquire Pine Bush Equipment
Komatsu America Corp., through its subsidiary F and M Equipment Ltd., has entered into a purchase agreement to acquire the assets of PBE Group, which consists of Pine Bush Equipment Co. and East PBE Inc. The parties plan to close the deal on April 1.
The new entity, to be named later, will assume PBE Group’s trade territory, which ranges from all of Connecticut, excluding Fairfield County, to select counties in southeastern New York state. The deal includes all Komatsu construction, mining and utility equipment sales and rentals, parts, service and customer support activities.
The Boniface family, which launched Pine Bush Equipment Co. in 1956, will continue with the new operating company, providing continuity and support.
“We’ve said in the past that Komatsu America is committed to excellence in the Northeast region of the U.S.,” said Rod Schrader, CEO, Komatsu America. “Investments in Midlantic Machinery, Edward Ehrbar, Komatsu Northeast and now Pine Bush, demonstrate the company’s determination to walk our talk. Our goal remains the same: provide the extra support the team in place needs to deliver unrivaled products, services and solutions that exceed customer expectations.”
The new unit will support Komatsu’s long-term strategic plans to grow and strengthen the distribution channel. Once the sale is complete, the new entity will be part of a much larger group of premiere distributors, which for customers, will mean more equipment and parts inventory availability, and greater service and support resources. Substantially, all employees, facilities and customer support infrastructure from PBE Group will be retained.
No other transaction terms were disclosed, or will be, Komatsu said.
Komatsu America Corp. is a U.S. subsidiary of Komatsu Ltd., the world’s second largest manufacturer and supplier of earthmoving equipment.
About the Author
Michael Roth
Editor
Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.