Sunbelt Rentals, A-Plant Acquire a Dozen Rental Companies in Fiscal First Half
Sunbelt Rentals and sister company A-Plant acquired a dozen companies in its first half of fiscal 2018, growing Ashtead’s rental location number to 977. The company paid £333 million (about U.S. $419 million) cash for the companies.
Sunbelt Canada made the first acquisition, acquiring the entire share capital of Voisin’s Equipment Rental and Universal Rental Services Ltd. for CDN $32 million with contingent consideration of up to CDN $2.5 million payable over the next year upon reaching of exceeding certain thresholds. Including acquired debt, the total cash consideration was CDN $76 million. Voisin’s is a general equipment rental business in Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
On June 29, A-Plant acquired the entire share capital of Astra Site Services Ltd. for £6 million in cash. Astra is a hydraulic attachment rental business in the U.K.
Sunbelt Canada acquired the entire share capital of Ricklock Rentals ltd. for a cash consideration of CDN $13 million. Richlock is a general equipment rental business in Langford, B.C., Canada.
In July 2018, Sunbelt U.S. acquired the business and assets of Wistar Equipment, for about $23 million in cash. Wistar is an industrial power rental company in New Jersey.
On July 20, Sunbelt U.S. acquired the entire share capital of Blagrave No. 2 Ltd., the parent company of Mabel Inc., a ground protection and trench-shoring business on the east coast of the U.S. Sunbelt paid about $93 million in the transaction.
On August 8, Sunbelt U.S. bought the business and assets of Berry Holdings, trading as Taylor Rental Center in Berea, Ohio, for about $1 million in cash.
On August 13, Sunbelt acquired the business and assets of Interstate Aerials LLC, for $206 million in cash. Interstate is a general equipment and aerial equipment rental business in Philadelphia and northern New Jersey.
On Sept. 5, Sunbelt U.S. acquired the business and assets of Equipment 4 Rent for about $17 million in cash, with contingent consideration of up to $0.5 million payable over the next year, depending on revenue meeting or exceeding certain thresholds. Equipment 4 Rent is a general equipment rental company in Avon, Mass.
On Sept. 25, Sunbelt U.S. acquired the business and assets of Gauer Service & Supply Co. for $1 million cash. Gauer is a general equipment rental company in Akron, Ohio.
On Sept. 25, Sunbelt U.S. acquired the business and assets of Midwest High Reach for $45 million in cash, based in Joliet, Ill. Midwest High Reach has been a leading aerial equipment rental provider in the greater Chicago market since 2013, supplying general contractors, electrical and mechanical contractors and structural steel contractors, with a fleet specializing in scissorlifts, boomlifts and jobsite forklifts. Dan Conway, managing partner of Craft Partners, Sherman Oaks, Calif., represented Midwest High Reach in the sale.
On Oct. 1, Sunbelt Canada acquired business and assets of Innovative Industrial Solutions, a flooring solutions rental business in Toronto and Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, for CND $4 million.
And on Oct. 28, Sunbelt Canada acquired the business and assets of Patcher Energy Management Ltd. for a cash consideration of CDN $7 million. Patcher is a temporary power rental business in Leduc, Alberta, Canada.
Sunbelt Rentals now has 719 locations in the United States, 84 in Canada, and 194 at A-Plant in the U.K.
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.