PHILADELPHIA, Pa. & OBERLIN, Ohio & BEAMSVILLE, Ontario--(BUSINESS WIRE)--LLR Partners today announced the investment in and combination of AgriNomix and Zwart Systems, two leaders in the Controlled Environment Agriculture (“CEA”) automation sector. The two business will operate as part of AdeptAg. Led by agricultural technology and irrigation veteran Rick Parod, AdeptAg is now the elite North American platform helping professional growers maximize their yields and productivity through automation and irrigation solutions.
AdeptAg will leverage the partnership with LLR to invest in the combined company’s growth, expand capabilities, and pursue additional acquisitions of best-in-class technology and solutions for controlled-environment growers. AgriNomix and Zwart Systems will continue to operate from their headquarters in Oberlin, OH, and Beamsville, Ontario, respectively.
AdeptAg CEO Rick Parod is a globally recognized automation leader, having retired as CEO from Lindsay Corporation prior to launching AdeptAg with LLR. While at Lindsay Corporation, he drove the company revenues from roughly $100M to well over $500M through the implementation of strategic, organic growth and acquisition initiatives.
“At AdeptAg, our mission is to deliver exceptional ROI to growers by listening to their needs, understanding each unique application, and delivering the best outcomes alongside our global network of technology partners,” said Parod. “I am thrilled to have the exceptional teams at AgriNomix, and Zwart Systems as the foundation of our platform, and to work with LLR Partners as we expand the platform and deliver an even greater breadth of market-driven offerings and services to growers of all types and sizes.”
AgriNomix is North America’s top supplier of process automation, internal logistics, and robotic solutions for growers. Zwart Systems is North America’s leader in comprehensive irrigation and water treatment solutions to controlled environment growers, and it also has strong experience base providing automation solutions. The wide-ranging core competencies of these two, best-in-class suppliers are extremely complementary. As a combined platform under AdeptAg, both companies are able to deliver turnkey design, automation solutions, irrigation systems and services for all controlled environment production needs. Using state-of-the-art design and simulation in its engineering process, AdeptAg partners with each grower to determine the best solutions to automate and improve production in a way that addresses each crop variety, stage, and environment.
“Controlled Environment Agriculture automation is growing at a phenomenal pace in North America due to a confluence of factors including labor shortages, climate change, and the global supply chain. Until now, the North American market was missing a one-stop shop for engineering, design, integration, and support services,” said Jesse Gray, principal at LLR Partners. Dave Stienes, partner at LLR added, “We are excited to bring these two leaders together as part of the AdeptAg family and under Rick’s leadership to empower growers to optimize their business and operations.”
About AdeptAg:
AdeptAg is the North American leader in turnkey design, automation solutions, irrigation systems, and services for any controlled environment production needs. The company provides professional horticultural and controlled-environment growers a complete platform of best-in-class, integrated solutions for maximizing yields and productivity. Formed through the combination of two industry leaders, AgriNomix and Zwart Systems, AdeptAg’s mission is to deliver exceptional ROI to growers by listening to their needs, understanding each unique application, and delivering the best outcomes along with a global network of technology partners. Learn more at www.adeptag.com
About LLR Partners:
LLR Partners is a lower middle market private equity firm investing in technology and healthcare businesses. We collaborate with our portfolio companies to identify and execute on key growth initiatives and help create long-term value. Founded in 1999 and with more than $5 billion raised across six funds, LLR is a flexible provider of equity capital for growth, recapitalizations and buyouts. Learn more at https://www.llrpartners.com/.
