Mason Wells Announces Sale of L.B. White

Mason Wells announced the closing of the sale of LBW Holding Corp. (“L.B. White” or the “Company”) to Modine Manufacturing Company (“Modine”), headquartered in Racine, Wisconsin. L.B. White was a Mason Wells Buyout Fund IV, LP portfolio company.

L.B. White is a manufacturer of branded forced-air, radiant, and variable rate heating equipment, evaporative cooling equipment, and replacement parts for the global swine, poultry, and portables markets. The Company holds a market-leading position in swine and poultry agriculture heating in North America and is one of the top market leaders in portables heating. L.B. White is headquartered in Onalaska, Wisconsin, with additional manufacturing and distribution operations in Georgia.

“We are very proud of the success that L.B. White has achieved under our ownership,” said Jay Radtke, executive managing director of Mason Wells. “Since our acquisition in 2017, we successfully executed the value creation plan that we developed together with the management team. We invested in new equipment to increase capacity and position the business for future growth. We also completed the acquisitions of Reeves Supply Company, a leading provider of evaporative cooling and ventilation door products to the poultry market, as well as Rentquip USA, a leading electric heat provider. These acquisitions furthered the Company’s market leadership positions in agriculture and portable heat, respectively. We would like to sincerely thank Kevin Gagermeier, President & CEO, and the entire L.B. White team for their dedication and hard work during our time together. We wish them all the best as the business transitions to the new owners, Modine.”

“Mason Wells has been an outstanding partner for the business and the management team over the last seven years,” said Kevin Gagermeier, President & CEO of L.B. White. “We really enjoyed the collaborative relationship with Mason Wells, who provided strategic direction, built a strong board of directors, and demonstrated a willingness to invest in the business through facility and equipment investments, as well as strategic acquisitions. The improvements made to the business in partnership with Mason Wells over the past several years are significant, and the future looks bright for L.B. White.”

Since its founding, Mason Wells has invested in a number of companies in the engineered products and services sector including past investments Aquion, Oilgear, Dedicated Computing, Premix, and GA Precision, and current investments MGS Healthcare Manufacturing, Structural Concepts Corporation, and Strato Technology Solutions.

L.B. White was advised by CIBC World Markets Corp., and Quarles & Brady LLP served as legal counsel.

L.B. White is a manufacturer of branded forced-air, radiant, and variable rate heating equipment, evaporative cooling equipment, and replacement parts for the global swine, poultry, and portables markets. Over L.B. White’s 70-year-plus history, the Company has become a leader in the global swine and poultry heating and cooling markets. The Company is at the forefront of confinement heating and cooling design and innovation and sets the industry standards for quality, reliability, and service. Construction and outdoor hospitality customers use L.B. White’s commercial-grade portable heaters for temporary heating needs. L.B. White is headquartered in Onalaska, Wisconsin, with additional manufacturing and distribution operations in Georgia. For more information, please visit the Company’s website www.lbwhite.com.

Mason Wells is a leading Midwest-based private equity firm that has raised $2.4 billion in aggregate across five independent buyout funds. The firm is currently investing out of Mason Wells Buyout Fund V, LP, a $767 million fund. Since Mason Wells was formed in 1998, its buyout funds have invested in four specific industry sectors: Consumer Packaged Goods, Outsourced Business Services, Engineered Products & Services, and Packaging Materials & Converting. For more information related to Mason Wells, please visit the firm’s website at www.masonwells.com.