Harrington Industrial Plastics (“Harrington”) is pleased to announce that it has completed the acquisition of Aetna Plastics (“Aetna”), in partnership with Aetna management.
About Aetna
Aetna Plastics was founded by Paul Davis in Cleveland, Ohio in 1946. Paul Davis had the foresight to know that the excellent properties of plastics would someday displace other industrial material in common uses. In 1956 Paul Davis established his reputation as a visionary leader and set about organizing other plastics distributors into what is now known as the International Association of Plastics Distributors (IAPD). The IAPD honored him posthumously in 1986, by naming the annual award bestowed upon a distinguished contributor to the plastics distribution industry “The Paul Davis Award of Merit.” The IAPD honored Paul again in 1994 when IAPD inducted him into the “Pioneer Club.” Of these inductees IAPD said, “Individually they represent the best in what a plastics distributor is and collectively they represent many years of progressive dedication to growing and perfecting the distribution of plastics.” (IAPD Magazine, January 1995)
Paul’s son Gary Davis took over as President in 1975 and has built Aetna into one of the most respected companies in the field. Aetna has grown steadily with its customers and vendors, establishing an unrivalled reputation for quality and customer service in the Midwest. Through a mix of strategic acquisitions and good old-fashioned business growth, Gary Davis has led Aetna to establish a leadership position in the areas of Fabrication, Industrial Plastics and Process Piping Systems.
Gary Davis, President of Aetna, will be joining Harrington to drive the business forward. “The combination of Aetna’s capabilities with Harrington’s national reach is a powerful one. This merger is great for customers and for employees and offers us the chance to partner with a market leader and really focus on growing our business.”
About Harrington
Harrington has been a leading distributor of industrial products for corrosive and high purity applications since 1959. With a national presence, Harrington is a leader in the market for piping and ancillary systems in the movement of liquids and gases in corrosive and high-purity applications. Harrington has achieved above-industry growth for decades through a relentless focus on customer service and bringing expertise to the table for customers and vendors. Products include tanks, tubing and hose, grating, pumps, valves, filtration, instrumentation and piping systems in a range of materials and for a wide range of corrosive and high-purity applications.
The success of Harrington is built upon a clear set of operating principles which equally value customers, suppliers, and employees.
“Aetna’s market leading position in fabrication combined with Harrington’s national reach offers tremendous nationwide growth potential for our two companies. Aetna’s local strength in industrial plastics and process piping systems will add significantly to our regional capabilities. Coming on the heels of our $2.5 million investment to establish a distribution center in Fort Wayne, Indiana, this investment speaks volumes of our belief in the region, its people, and its potential,” said Harrington President David Abercrombie.
“We have found in Gary Davis and Aetna a very strong cultural fit and shared vision and ambition for our combined companies. We look forward to working together to bring new capabilities to our customers and our vendor partners,” said Harrington CEO Eben Lenderking.
Nautic Partners
Nautic Partners, a Providence, Rhode Island-based middle-market private equity firm, acquired Harrington in March of 2020 in partnership with management.
Chris Pierce, a Managing Director of Nautic, said, “Harrington has a deep, experienced management team that we believe has accelerated the business’s growth trajectory over recent years and has a great culture across the organization. The acquisition of Aetna is in line with our stated goal to support the company’s continued organic growth, as well as to pursue selective strategic acquisitions in Harrington’s fragmented market.”
Nautic is a middle-market private equity firm that focuses on three industries: healthcare, industrials, and services. Nautic has completed over 135 platform transactions throughout its 34-plus year history. Nautic’s strategy is to partner with management teams to accelerate the growth trajectory of its portfolio companies via add-on acquisitions, targeted operating initiatives, and increased management team depth. Nautic generally makes equity investments of $25 to $250 million or more. For more information, please visit www.nautic.com.
