News

Managecore
Protera Deepens SAP Expertise with Managecore Acquisition
Protera Technologies (Protera), a global provider of SAP and Cloud Managed Services, announces the acquisition of Managecore. Based in Franklin, Wisconsin, Managecore is a leading provider of RISE with SAP and broader public cloud-focused SAP services. The acquisition deepens Protera's commitment to SAP and brings strong expertise in Google Cloud Platform, which complements Protera's long-standing partnerships with AWS and Azure. This unique combination of capabilities and global support creates a market-leading specialist for SAP on public cloud.
Since it's founding in 2016, Managecore has built a strong reputation of helping enterprise clients manage SAP in the public cloud. Managecore was among the earliest Google Cloud Platform partners to specialize in SAP and one of the first SAP partners to release a companion solution for RISE with SAP.
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https://managecore.com/news/protera-deepens-sap-expertise-with-managecore-acquisition/

BizTimes.com
Berlon Industries acquires Viola-based Lowe Manufacturing
By Ashley Smart
Hustisford-based Berlon Industries, a portfolio company of Delafield-based private equity firm Blackthorne Partners, has acquired Viola-based Lowe Manufacturing. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Lowe Manufacturing is a supplier of auger, trench and grapple attachments.
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https://biztimes.com/berlon-industries-acquires-viola-based-lowe-manufacturing/

Stout
Stout Advises Design Specialties on its Sale to GHP Group
Stout announced that Design Specialties, LLC (Design Specialties), a portfolio company of Blackthorne Partners (Blackthorne), has been acquired by GHP Group Inc. (GHP), a leading developer and distributor of seasonal products for major home centers, retailers, and online retailers. GHP is a portfolio company of Novacap. Stout served as exclusive investment banker to Design Specialties and Blackthorne in connection with this transaction.
Founded in 1983, Design Specialties is a Milwaukee-based designer and manufacturer of custom fireplace doors and screens, hearth accessories, and outdoor products. Design Specialties has cultivated a reputation of providing the highest quality fireplace doors and related products in the industry.
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https://www.stout.com/en/news/stout-advises-design-specialties-sale-ghp-group

BizTimes.com
Design Specialties acquires Indiana-based fireplace door manufacturer
By Brandon Anderegg
Milwaukee-based Design Specialties, LLC acquired fireplace door manufacturer Hearth Craft of Clarksville, Indiana, the company announced Tuesday.
Founded in 1956, Hearth Craft specializes in the design and production of fireplace enclosures.
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https://biztimes.com/design-specialties-acquires-indiana-based-fireplace-door-manufacturer/

Yahoo! Finance
Universal Forest Buys Pallet USA to Boost Presence, Offerings
By Zacks Equity Research
In order to expands its industrial product capacity and services in the Midwest region, Universal Forest Products, Inc.'s UFPI affiliate has acquired Pallet USA, LLC -- a Hartford, WI-based wooden pallets manufacturer and supplier. However, financial terms of the deal are not yet disclosed.
Pallet USA manufactures pallets and crates, as well as provides services like heat treating, pallet removal and recycling, custom product design, delivery and managed inventory programs. Also, it distributes industrial lumber and sheet stock.
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https://finance.yahoo.com/news/universal-forest-buys-pallet-usa-135401833.html

BizTimes.com
Design Specialties strives for quick delivery of custom fireplace doors
By Arthur Thomas
On the production floor at Milwaukee-based Design Specialties LLC, you will find a high-tech laser cutter next to a 100-year-old anvil. One cuts precise steel parts, while the other serves as a base for grinding or hammering detail into custom fireplace doors.
The mixture of modern precision techniques and old-fashioned craftsmanship is part of what differentiates the company's products in a niche market. Ralph Howard, president and chief executive officer of Design Specialties, said finishes like a hammered edge could be automated, but the product would lose its unique characteristics. Plus, watching a skilled employee mark the edge, it's hard to imagine a machine going faster.
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https://biztimes.com/design-specialties-strives-for-quick-delivery-of-custom-fireplace-doors/

Press Release
Schaefer Brush Adds E. Gornell & Sons To Organization
Industrial brush manufacturer Schaefer Brush, Waukesha, is excited to announce the acquisition of E. Gornell & Sons, Chicago.
The company will operate E. Gornell & Sons independently, continuing in the rich tradition of serving the brush industry and industrial distribution, according to Kim Erdmann, president and CEO of both companies.
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https://schaeferbrush.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/SCH-Acquistion-Press-Release-2.28.19.pdf

BizTimes.com
Former Symmetry execs launch new company, raise $1.24 million
Managecore specializes in SAP software
By Ben Stanley
Two former Symmetry Corp. executives have launched a new Franklin-based information technology company called Managecore and raised $1.24 million in an initial funding round that opened in October, according to a notice filed with the SEC.
Michael Haase, former executive vice president of sales and marketing at Brookfield-based Symmetry Corp., founded Managecore in October. Frank Powell, who was president and chief executive officer of Symmetry Corp. from 2013 to 2015, joined Managecore as a partner in December.
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https://www.biztimes.com/2017/ideas/innovation/former-symmetry-execs-launch-new-company-raise-1-24-million/

TriCore Solutions
TriCore Expands ERP Application Management Services with Acquisition of SAP Managed Service Provider
Boston, MA - September 1, 2015 - TriCore Solutions, the application management experts, today announced that they have acquired SAP managed service provider Group Basis. This acquisition enables TriCore to expand their ERP Application Managed Service offerings to SAP environments. The combined services will help customers improve the performance and availability of their SAP environments while reducing costs. Additionally, clients can unlock the value of their data for better decision making, as well as provide strategic consulting and implementation as they enhance their SAP investments. Wade Walla, an original founder of Group Basis, will join TriCore's management team.
TriCore helps more than 260 enterprise organizations unlock the business value of their IT investments. The company offers ERP application management, business analytics, and managed infrastructure services for mid-market and enterprise customers. With this acquisition, TriCore now offers a full suite of managed application services for the three largest ERP solutions, including Oracle E-Business Suite, PeopleSoft, and SAP.
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http://www.tricoresolutions.com/news-events/news-and-press/tricore-expands-erp-application-management-services-with-acquisition-of-sap

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Schaefer Brush Manufacturing sold to Blackthorne Partners
By Thomas Content
Schaefer Brush Manufacturing of Waukesha, a 110-year-old manufacturer of industrial brushes, has been sold to Blackthorne Partners, a Brookfield investment group.
Financial terms of the sale, which ends four generations of Schaefer family involvement in the business, weren't disclosed.
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http://www.jsonline.com/business/schaefer-brush-manufacturing-sold-to-blackthorne-partners-b99510905z1-305701791.html

BizTimes.com
Blackthorne Partners acquires Milwaukee fireplace door manufacturer
Milwaukee-based fireplace door manufacturer Design Specialties Inc. has been acquired by Brookfield private equity firm Blackthorne Partners Ltd. and Michael Draves.
Design Specialties, which declined to disclose its employee count, makes doors, screens and other hearth accessories sold at specialty hearth retailers across the U.S. and Canada. It was founded in 1983 and will remain at its 40,000-square-foot factory at 11100 W. Heather Ave. on Milwaukee's northwest side.
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http://www.biztimes.com/article/20150331/ENEWSLETTERS02/150339938/-1/daily_enews

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Columbus company acquired by Brookfield's Blackthorne Partners
By Kathleen Gallagher
Hughes Co., a Columbus maker of stainless steel food-processing equipment, has been acquired for an undisclosed price by Blackthorne Partners Ltd. based in Brookfield.
Ross Lund, previously general manager at Trostel Ltd. in Lake Geneva, was also part of the acquisition team and has become president and chief executive officer of the company.
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http://www.jsonline.com/business/columbus-company-acquired-by-blackthorne-partners-b99232378z1-252025191.html
March 11, 2014
Press Release
Business Executive, Blackthorne Partners Combine to Purchase Hughes Company
Significant Growth Planned for Food Processing Machinery Manufacturer
Hughes Company, a Columbus, WI.-based manufacturer and international distributor of stainless steel equipment for the food processing industry, has been acquired by Blackthorne Partners Ltd., and former Trostel, Ltd, executive Ross Lund, who has become president and chief executive officer of the company.
"We have aggressive growth goals for the company, which I know we can achieve based on the company's existing staff of highly skilled and dedicated employees, our existing manufacturing technology, and the new resources we will bring to the operation," Lund said. "We will help our customers become even more productive through investments in our people and in technology."
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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Pallet USA Expands Product, Service Lines through Acquisition of Goeman's Wood Products
Pallet USA now offers a broad range of pallet and wooden packaging services via the acquisition of Goeman's Wood Products. Both companies are in metropolitan Milwaukee.
Pallet USA, LLC, of Lannon, Wis., has significantly expanded its product and service line through the acquisition of a majority of the assets of Goeman's Wood Products, Inc., of Hartford, Wis.
"Along with the sustainably reconditioned pallets we're known for, Pallet USA customers can now benefit from the extensive products and services of Goeman's Wood Products, including new wooden pallets, wooden shipping crates and package engineering," said John Sonn, Pallet USA president.
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http://www.jsonline.com/business/pressrelease/national-press-releases/pallet-usa-expands-product-service-lines-through-acquisition-of-goemans-wood-products-241818211.html
BizTimes.com
Buyers and sellers invited to BizTimes M&A Forum
Company owners interested in learning more about the process and prospects of buying or selling businesses are invited to attend the annual BizTimes M&A Forum, which will take place Friday, May 3, at the Pfister Hotel in downtown Milwaukee from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m.
The theme for this year's event is, "Mergers & Acquisitions: Buyers & Sellers - Where Do We Go From Here?"
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http://www.biztimes.com/article/20130313/ENEWSLETTERS02/130319922
BizTimes.com
Blackthorne acquires Oak Creek IT Company
Mequon-based private equity firm Blackthorne Partners Ltd. recently acquired Oak Creek-based network support provider Group Basis LLC and plans to double the company's size in the next two years.
The deal is one of several recently for Blackthorne, which has targeted smaller companies for acquisitions.
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http://www.biztimes.com/article/20130218/MAGAZINE03/302149983/Blackthorne-acquires-Oak-Creek-IT-company&template=currentIssue

The Business Journal
Mequon private equity firm Blackthorne Partners buys Berlon Industries
By Jeff Engel
Private equity firm Blackthorne Partners Ltd. said it has acquired Berlon Industries, a manufacturer of buckets and attachments for skid loaders, telehandlers and compact utility tractors.
Hustisford-based Berlon is a family-owned business serving about 900 companies in the agricultural, construction and landscape management industries through an extensive dealer network. Blackthorne Partners, Mequon, is a private equity firm that focuses on small, niche companies.
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http://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/news/2012/11/13/mequon-private-equity-firm-blackthorne.html
BizTimes.com
BizNotes - Scheibel Halaska Recieves ADDY for Pallet USA Logo Design
By Alysha Schertz
Scheibel Halaska
Scheibel Halaska, Milwaukee, recently received two ADDY Awards from the American Advertising Federation (AAF)-Madison chapter. The firm was a Gold ADDY winner in the Elements of Advertising – Logo category for its design of the Pallet USA logo, on behalf of Blackthorne Partners, and a Silver ADDY winner in the Interactive Media – Websites, B-to-B category for its design of the Mertz Associates website. Scheibel Halaska contributing team members include Tom Groff, copy chief, and Vince Halaska, digital marketing manager. The American Advertising Federation ADDY Awards are the advertising industry's largest competition, attracting over 50,000 entries nationwide through local ADDY competitions.
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http://www.biztimes.com/article/20120319/MAGAZINE03/120329852/0/magazine02/BizNotes&template=currentIssue

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Investors see growth in company that repairs and resells pallets
By Kathleen Gallagher
Some see heaps of pallets stacked behind grocery stores, strewn around manufacturing floors and stuffed into Dumpsters, a few at a time so they'll be taken away.
Blackthorne Partners LLC sees an opportunity.
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http://www.jsonline.com/business/124828784.html

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Private equity firm invests $2 million in Integrated Medical Partners
By Kathleen Gallagher
Blackthorne Partners Ltd. has invested $2 million in Integrated Medical Partners LLC, a Milwaukee company that runs several health care information technology businesses.
Blackthorne closed this week on the funding, which gives it a minority stake in the company, said John F. Syburg, the firm's president and co-founder.
Read more »
http://www.jsonline.com/business/102123469.html