Apache buys Ohio business

Apache, an employee-owned business at 4805 Bowling St. SW in Cedar Rapids, has acquired its fifth company in as many years.

Apache, a manufacturer and wholesale distributor of hose products, fabricated belting products, and cut and molded rubber, late Friday announced the purchase of Trico Belting & Supply Co. of Cincinnati, Ohio. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Trico, founded in 1985, is a supplier of light-duty conveyor belting in North America with locations in Cincinnati and Chicago. With the purchase, Apache will have about 300 employees and annual revenue of $100 million, according to Tom Pientok, president and chief executive officer.

"This acquisition is Apache's largest one to date, and we are thrilled to bring on board the expertise and commitment to excellence of John Shafer and the team at Trico," Pientok said. "When you consider the combination of these two highly complementary, well-known names in the industry, this acquisition simply makes sense."

Pientok said the path for the acquisition was cleared in September when Apache made a strategic business model change, moving away from selling directly to end users. Apache concentrates its sales efforts on distributors, dealers and original-equipment-manufacturing customers.

With the change, Apache's and Trico's market approaches are consistent. The change was a key element in the strategic alignment that enabled the companies to come together seamlessly.

"It doesn't happen often that you bring together two companies that are such a natural fit,” said Shafer, president of Trico. "This acquisition brings together two great companies with a strong passion for customer service and helps provide distributor and original equipment manufacturing customers with more of the products, services, solutions and technical expertise."

Shafer, a key player in the success of the transaction, will stay on after the merger is completed.

On Sept. 1, 2011, Apache completed its purchase of Seals Unlimited of Hillsboro, Ore., a manufacturer of rubber extrusion, rubber moldings, gaskets, and hydraulic gate seals for government and private industries. The acquisition expanded Apache's product offering, providing vertical integration into molded products, and adding a location to aid its distribution network in the west and northwest.

Apache previously acquired Hose Central, a Pennsylvania-based competitor, in November 2007, Ex-Cel Belting, St. Louis, Mo., in December 2008, and AG Belt of Des Moines in April 2010. Pientok said the acquisitions have played a major role in the doubling of Apache's revenues since 2009.

''We have a very deliberate and focused growth plan," Pientok said. "Strategic acquisitions are a critical component of the plan."

Founded in 1963, Apache and its subsidiaries has customers throughout the United States, South America, Europe, and China