O’Brien Lifting Solutions Inc. has been acquired by Warren Equity Partners.
Coldwater acted as the exclusive M&A advisor to O’Brien Lifting Solutions Inc. (“O’Brien” or the “Company”) on its sale to Warren Equity Partners (“WEP”). Stikeman Elliott LLP acted as sell-side legal advisor, Greenberg Traurig LLP served as U.S. tax advisor, and Durward Jones Barkwell & Company LLP as accounting and tax advisor.
Established in 1963, O’Brien is a leading provider of material handling solutions, serving a broad range of customers including manufacturing and process industries, mining, metal production, construction and engineering, shipyards, ports, and terminals. The Company manufactures and installs a wide array of cranes, including overhead, jib, workstation, gantry, and monorail varieties, in addition to lifting beams, commercial doors, and aftermarket parts and services. Founded in 2015, WEP is a Florida-based private equity firm that invests in lower middle market companies that provide mission-critical products or services to the infrastructure and building products markets.
Coldwater developed and marketed a well-researched investment thesis for O’Brien, positioning the Company as a compelling growth platform in the industrial lifting sector. Coldwater navigated through complex cross-border structures, including a tax-efficient U.S. equity rollover for senior management.
This transaction will complement WEP’s existing portfolio of overhead crane manufacturers and provide a solid foundation to achieve scale within a highly fragmented industry.
