Daikin acquires US filter manufacturer Flanders for US$430m
Flanders manufactures air filters with high functionality that are used in industrial cleanrooms in the pharma and food processing industries
Daikin Industries, a Japanese manufacturer of air conditioning products, has acquired, through its subsidiary American Air Filter Company (AAF), air filter manufacturer Flanders Holdings.
The firm will pay US$430m (approximately JPY50.7bn) to acquire all of Flanders shares from private equity firm Insight Equity Holdings, which acquired the business in 2012.
The transaction is expected to be concluded in April.
Flanders is a leading manufacturer of air filters in the US, particularly products with high functionality and high value-added that are used in industrial cleanrooms in the pharmaceutical and food processing industries.
The company, based in Washington, NC, US offers products for commercial to residential use and has a nationwide sales network. Its manufacturing bases are near most major US cities, including Chicago and New York.
Having established manufacturing bases in Japan, North America, Europe, China, and Southeast Asia, Daikin has expanded its filter business until now through its subsidiaries AAF and Nippon Muki. Products include commercial-use air conditioning filters used in buildings and factories and engineering, including dust collection systems for production facilities.
The Flanders business will be integrated into AAF and enable AAF to leverage its global sales network to market the cleanroom equipment and high-end air filter products that are Flanders' strengths. In addition to making AAF the leading manufacturer in the US, this merger will position AAF as a leading company in the global market.
As a result of the merger, the filter business of the Daikin Group will have sales exceeding Y100bn annually. Future synergies with the air conditioning business are anticipated as the filter business becomes a core Daikin business and the firm's third pillar behind air conditioning and chemicals.
