Gryphon Investors to Acquire Leading Specialty HVAC Company AirX Climate Solutions

Gryphon Investors (“Gryphon”), a leading middle-market private equity firm, announced today that it has agreed to acquire AirX Climate Solutions (“ACS” or the “Company”), a leading designer, manufacturer, distributor, and servicer of highly engineered, functionally critical products for the specialty heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (“HVAC”) markets.

Gryphon’s investment will support ACS’ exciting growth initiatives, including broadening its geographic footprint, expanding its aftermarket and service offerings, and executing strategic acquisitions. As part of the transaction, ACS’ CEO Rick Aldridge and other members of management will reinvest alongside Gryphon and will continue to manage the Company. Gryphon is acquiring the Company from private equity firm L Catterton, and the transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2023. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK, ACS is a full-service, specialty HVAC solutions provider. The Company offers design, installation, maintenance, and repair of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems for specialized solutions across a diverse set of end markets, including telecommunications, data centers, energy storage, rental, educational, industrial, and commercial markets. With a workforce of over 600 people, ACS prides itself on delivering best-in-class service through its highly trained team and engineering capabilities.

“We are excited to invest in ACS and to partner with Rick and the Company’s talented management team,” said Scott Hearn and Leigh Abramson, Co-Heads of Gryphon’s Industrial Growth Group. “We believe ACS, with its longstanding reputation for high-quality products and outstanding customer service, is an ideal platform upon which to further its leadership position in this large and highly fragmented market. We will leverage Gryphon’s deep experience in the HVAC sector through our investments in Right Time and Southern Home Services, along with our successfully realized investment in Heritage Distribution Holdings, to help ACS continue to evolve.”

Mr. Aldridge said, “We are delighted to partner with Gryphon as our next investor. Their depth of knowledge in HVAC and network of executive advisors will open several avenues for our next phase of growth. Our entire team remains fully committed to serving our customers with the highest levels of quality and service.”

Mark Fuller, Managing Director in Gryphon’s Industrial Growth Group, noted, “ACS has a proven track record driven by its strong brands, including Custom Air Products & Services (“CAPS”) and Marvair, and its dedication to innovative customer solutions. We are thrilled to support Rick and ACS’ experienced managers, with whom we will prioritize working closely to both accelerate organic growth and pursue add-on acquisitions.”

As part of the transaction, Messrs. Hearn, Abramson, and Fuller will join the Company’s Board of Directors alongside Mr. Aldridge. The transaction marks Gryphon’s fourth investment in the HVAC value chain and follows the firm’s successful exit of Heritage Distribution Holdings earlier this year.

Jefferies and William Blair served as financial advisors to Gryphon. Baird and Nomura acted as financial advisors to ACS on the transaction. Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal advisor to Gryphon.

About AirX Climate Solutions

ACS provides highly engineered, cooling and ventilation specialized solutions serving mission-critical applications across a diverse set of end markets, including telecommunications, data centers, energy storage, rental, educational, and industrial, and commercial markets. For decades, the Company has been the preferred choice for organizations requiring high-quality and highly configurable HVAC systems operating in harsh environments. With over 600 employees, ACS operates its manufacturing footprint across Houston, TX, Cordele, GA, and Tulsa, OK with brands that include Custom Air Products & Services (“CAPS”), Marvair, Specific Systems, Eubank, Industrial Climate Engineering (“ICE”) and Dynaline. For more information about AirX Climate Solutions, please visit https://airxcs.com/about.

About Gryphon Investors

Gryphon Investors (www.gryphoninvestors.com) is a leading middle-market private equity firm focused on profitably growing and competitively advantaged companies in the Business Services, Consumer, Healthcare, Industrial Growth, and Software sectors. With approximately $9 billion of assets under management, Gryphon prioritizes investments in which it can form strong partnerships with founders, owners, and executives to accelerate the building of leading companies and generate enduring value through its integrated deal and operations business model. Gryphon’s highly differentiated model integrates its well-proven Operations Resources Group, which is led by full-time, Gryphon senior operating executives with general management, human capital acquisition and development, treasury, finance, and accounting expertises. Gryphon’s three core investment strategies include its Flagship, Heritage, and Junior Capital strategies, each with dedicated funds of capital. The Flagship and Heritage strategies target equity investments of $50 million to $350 million per portfolio company. The Junior Capital strategy targets investments in junior securities of credit facilities, arranged by leading middle-market lenders, in both Gryphon-controlled companies, as well as in other private equity-backed companies operating in Gryphon’s targeted investment sectors.

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