Windjammer Capital Investors ("Windjammer") is pleased to announce it has sold JWC Environmental, LLC ("JWC" or the "Company") to Sulzer Ltd. ("Sulzer") for an enterprise value of $215 million.
Founded in 1973 and headquartered in Santa Ana, California, JWC is a leading provider of solids reduction and removal products such as grinders, screens, and dissolved air flotation systems for municipal, industrial and commercial wastewater applications. JWC is known for highly engineered, mission-critical grinding and solids separation equipment that protects and ensures the efficient operation of key downstream equipment such as pumps. The Company has a fast growing and recurring aftermarket business that provides a complete offering of parts and services to a large installed base built up over the last 45 years.
Windjammer acquired JWC from its founding family ownership group in August, 2011. During its ownership, Windjammer added key senior managers to JWC's leadership team and supported the Company's expansion into industrial products and sales channels, increased product development initiatives to facilitate continued innovation in JWC's leading Muffin Monster® products, completed two strategic acquisitions to enhance its product offering and accelerate growth in industrial market applications, and invested to improve supply chain and overall operating efficiency. During these six active years overall employment grew from 185 to approximately 230 today.
Jeff Miehe, Managing Director at Windjammer, commented, "JWC's market leadership position in a stable municipal market was attractive at the time of our initial investment, and served as a solid base to grow the Company across geographies, product offerings, and end market applications. Windjammer helped JWC significantly transform during the past six years, and the Company is well positioned to continue on its growth trajectory with the support of Sulzer."
Ken Biele, CEO of JWC, commented, "Windjammer provided valuable support and resources to assist JWC as we executed on our long-term strategic plan to transform the Company and better serve both new and existing customers. Windjammer thinks and acts like both operators and investors, and encouraged and supported our strategic investments."
If you have any questions related to this transaction, please contact Jeff Miehe or Matt Anderson at (949) 721-9944.
About Windjammer
Windjammer Capital is a national private equity investment firm, based in Newport Beach, CA and Waltham, MA that invests control equity in middle‐market businesses and in partnership with management. Windjammer manages over $2 billion of committed capital with respect to its control equity investment strategy, and since its founding in 1990, has completed over 50 platform acquisitions and over 100 strategic add‐ons. The firm targets investments in companies that are leaders in attractive niche markets and share several of the following characteristics: significant and defensible market positions; differentiated products and services; strong management teams; scalable business models; identifiable growth opportunities; and consistent financial performance.