TMAT purchase makes Blachford Acoustics Group world’s only complete interiors/acoustic Industrial Vehicles supplier…
TMAT – the UK manufacturer of acoustic components for industrial and agricultural vehicles – has been purchased by North American manufacturing company Blachford Acoustics Group for an undisclosed sum.
By investing in TMAT, Blachford Acoustics Group (www.blachford.com) becomes the only complete interiors/acoustic Industrial Vehicles supplier, offering headliners, trim, acoustic and floor system solutions for platforms designed and built in both North America and, now, Europe.
The purchase of TMAT means no other company in the world working in the Industrial Vehicles sector will have the focus and resource Blachford Acoustics Group now has at its disposal. The Blachford Acoustics Laboratory and Research Centre is a world-class facility featuring a large hemi-anechoic chamber equipped with a heavy-duty dynamometer, a reverberation room as well as a complete chemical/materials lab.
Blachford Acoustics Group, led by Dr. John Blachford, President, has grown significantly over the past several years. With the TMAT purchase, the 93-year-old Canadian-based company expands to six manufacturing locations in Canada, the United States and now the UK. Blachford is a Gold Certified supplier to Caterpillar and was recently presented the Masters of Quality Award by Daimler Trucks NA.
Dr. Blachford explained that his interest in TMAT dates back many years. “Way back in 1995 we tried, unsuccessfully, to make a license agreement with TMAT, because we very much needed to be manufacturing polyurethane mats in North America. We also needed a partner in the UK or Europe.
“Now, finally, we have actually bought TMAT, which has recently become a very successful company. The extent to which TMAT’s product line complements ours and our line complements theirs is remarkable, and will result in great opportunities for the growth of both companies.”
The move into Europe is a key element of Blachford’s global strategy with further expansion into other regions to follow.
TMAT will continue to manufacture its products and solutions at its c HQ but, critically, will now have access to Blachford Acoustics Group’s unrivalled R&D laboratory and testing facilities.
TMAT will also retain its brand and identity, and will benefit from being part of a global organisation and overarching brand that is unique in its market.
With TMAT no longer being restricted by being part of a private equity house and now forming part of a global group, profits can be reinvested in TMAT so that it can achieve its considerable ambitions, particularly with respect to improvements in processes and new products and access to Blachford’s technical resources.
Jason Lippitt, who will remain as MD of TMAT, said: “We are delighted to have been bought by a world-class, global investor that shares our strategy and ambition.
“Our business plans are so closely aligned that they could quite easily have been written by one another. Both businesses are absolutely committed to R&D and to making the best solutions for industrial and agricultural vehicles across the world, steering clear of the automotive sector.
“With Blachford behind us, TMAT will be considerably better-placed to extend its global reach and take advantage of exciting new opportunities to supply global OEMs that previously would not have been possible. We look forward to becoming a major player on the world stage.”
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