Harrington Industrial Plastics, a Portfolio Company of Nautic Partners, Announces Acquisition of Crist Group

CHINO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Harrington Industrial Plastics (“Harrington”) is pleased to announce the acquisition of Crist Group (“Crist”), in partnership with the company’s owner, Paul Crist. Headquartered in Woodland, CA, Crist is a leading specialty fabricator of critical fluid process components and assemblies with a focus on the semiconductor end market and applications in other markets including medical. Crist’s highly technical fabrication capabilities include infrared fusion welding, hot gas welding, ultrasonic welding, CNC machining, laser drilling and etching, precision flaring, and clean room preparation and packaging. Paul Crist developed an expertise in fluoropolymer materials while he was an executive at Harrington in the 1990’s, and he founded the company in 2000. Under Paul’s leadership, Crist has grown into a market leader in fluoropolymer fabrication producing custom assemblies that are specified into production-level semiconductor tool equipment. The company has led the industry in innovation around process design, tooling, and engineering capabilities to better serve its customers. Today, Crist enjoys a strong reputation for process expertise and high quality products and services. The acquisition will enable Harrington to deepen its offering to customers in the semiconductor industry by providing fabrication services that complement its existing products. For more information on Crist visit www.cristgroup.com.

Dave Abercrombie, CEO of Harrington, said, “Paul Crist and his team have built a strong fabrication operation that is well-known for its unique technical competencies in fluoropolymer materials, particularly in the rapidly growing semiconductor segment. We have had a longstanding relationship with Crist Group and Paul personally, and are very excited to welcome the Crist team into the Harrington organization. The acquisition is highly complementary to our business and will enhance our ability to provide differentiated, value-add products and services to our customers. We are very pleased to have closed Harrington’s third add-on and we will continue to evaluate other attractive opportunities.”

Paul Crist, who is joining the Harrington team and will continue to run the Crist division, said, “We have had a strong relationship with Harrington as a trusted vendor and are now very excited to be joining the Harrington platform. Crist Group has succeeded in achieving substantial growth and developing strong customer relationships, and we believe that with Harrington’s resources and distribution network we can further support our customers and broaden our reach. I can say confidently based on our experience with Harrington as a vendor, my personal relationship with Dave Abercrombie and the Harrington team, as well as my former experience as an employee at Harrington, that our two companies share a similar culture of dedication to customer service and support for our employees. We look forward to a strong partnership.”

About Harrington

Harrington has been a leading distributor of industrial process solutions since 1959. With a national presence, Harrington distributes and fabricates products that move fluids in corrosive and high-purity process applications. Products include thermoplastic pipes, valves, fittings, tanks, tubing and hose, pumps, filtration, and instrumentation. Harrington has achieved above-industry growth for decades through a relentless focus on customer service and bringing expertise to the table for customers and suppliers. The success of Harrington is built upon a clear set of operating principles which equally value customers, suppliers, and employees. For more information on Harrington visit www.hipco.com.

About Nautic Partners

Nautic is a middle-market private equity firm that focuses on three industries: healthcare, industrials, and services. Nautic has completed over 150 platform transactions throughout its 35-plus year history. Nautic’s strategy is to partner with management teams to accelerate the growth trajectory of its portfolio companies via add-on acquisitions, targeted operating initiatives, and increased management team depth. For more information, please visit www.nautic.com.