Tampa, Florida – September 1, 2020 – Hyde Park Capital Advisors, LLC (“Hyde Park Capital”) is pleased to announce the divestiture of Diamonex, a business owned by a subsidiary of Morgan Advanced Materials (LON:MGAM) (“Morgan”), to Best Engineered Surface Technologies, LLC (“BEST”), a portfolio company of Sowell & Company (“Sowell”). Hyde Park Capital served as the exclusive investment banker to Morgan for this transaction.
“Diamonex has long been a world class manufacturer serving a diverse customer base,” said John Righini, President of Morgan Technical Ceramics. “We are very excited and pleased BEST has acquired Diamonex with the intent to continue the excellent service to the market and grow the business, while maintaining a commitment to the community and employees in Allentown,PA.”
“We are pleased to welcome Diamonex into the BEST family,” added Bill Faucett, President and Chief Executive Officer of BEST. “Diamonex has a number of attractive characteristics that fit well with BEST including being high on the technology pyramid, having a strong management team and having diverse established market presences with blue chip customers. We are excited about the prospects of working with the team to continue to provide high quality service and grow the business.”
Jeff Hendricks, Vice President with Hyde Park Capital, commented, “As Morgan’s investment banker, we enjoyed working alongside the management team to market, structure, and successfully close this important transaction for Morgan’s employees and shareholders. BEST and Sowell impressed us from the start with their charter to build through acquisition an agile surface coatings and finishing business. The acquisition of Diamonex provides BEST with access to new industries and customers, as well as an experienced team with a culture of innovation, quality and timely delivery.”
About Diamonex
Diamonex, located in Allentown, PA, specializes in applying polycrystalline diamond and amorphous Diamond-Like Carbon (“DLC”) coatings via Chemical-Vapor Deposition (“CVD”) onto a wide variety of substrates including Reaction Bonded Silicon Carbide metal, glass, ceramic and polymer employing Hot Filament CVD and Plasma-Enhanced processes. The company’s leading products are CVD diamond coated chemical mechanical planarization pad conditioners for use in the manufacturing of semiconductor wafers. In addition, the company manufactures and sells wear and scratch resistant coated glass windows or other substrates primarily for use in imaging and scanning equipment. It also provides coating services for top-layer DLC coating on customer supplied substrates and devices. For additional information, please visit www.morgantechnicalceramics.com.
About Morgan Advanced Materials
Morgan Advanced Materials plc is a London Stock Exchange public company founded in 1856. Morgan has a global manufacturing footprint in over 30 countries and selling into over 100 countries. Morgan has material science capabilities focused on ceramics and carbon. The materials science expertise combined with Morgan’s application engineering provides customers in the industrial, transportation, petrochemical, energy,semiconductor and electronics, healthcare, security and defense industries with materials and products designed to solve complex and technologically demanding problems. The materials and products Morgan manufactures aim to make more efficient use of the world’s resources and improve quality of life. For additional information, please visit www.morganadvancedmaterials.com.
About BEST
While the surface treatment industry is characterized by fragmented operations of both privately held family businesses and small private corporate businesses that are providing one or two processes into one or two markets, BEST Engineered Surface Technology LLC is working to change that “norm” by acquiring multiple geographically disbursed coating/finishing companies that have unique or diverse processing technologies and are selling into diverse markets. This will allow BEST to support its growing customer base with new adaptable technologies which may resolve their design or materials challenges. BESTis focused on acquiring coating/finishing/plating/shielding companies in the North American continent and will integrate its portfolio companies into a world-class coating/finishing segment leader. This company will be vertically integrated so that not only can it provide world-class technological services to OEMs but be the “first call” company for product resolution issues as well. For additional information, please visit www.bestsurfacetech.com.
About Sowell
Sowell & Company is a private investment firm investing its own capital to support growing companies, management buyouts, recapitalizations and corporate divestitures in both healthy and distressed situations. The firm focuses on backing experienced managers by making up to $20 million investments in companies that typically have less than $10 million of EBITDA. After making an initial investment, the firm works closely with management to accelerate internal growth by thoughtfully investing capital and other resources into sales, marketing, R&D, new products and improved technology that can differentiate its portfolio companies in the marketplace, thereby creating sustainable, profitable growth. The firm also invests in external growth in the form of acquisitions, having completed more than 30 add-on acquisitions for its portfolio companies in the last ten years. For additional information, please visit www.sowellco.com.
About Hyde Park Capital
Hyde Park Capital is an institutionally focused investment banking firm specializing in mergers and acquisitions and serving the corporate finance needs of middle market public and private companies. Its principals have extensive investment banking experience executing merger and acquisition engagements, including purchase and sale of company assignments, recapitalizations, financial advisory, fairness opinions and raising growth capital and acquisition financing for companies, including equity, mezzanine, and senior debt. Hyde Park Capital is headquartered in Tampa, Florida and is a member of FINRA and SIPC. For additional information, please visit www.hydeparkcapital.com.
