Long Water Private Equity has acquired a majority stake in Blastco, a Channelview, Texas-based provider of surface preparation, industrial coatings and tank rehabilitation services, for undisclosed terms. Founded in 1983, Blastco serves customers across the municipal, federal, midstream and industrial sectors. The company will anchor a national industrial coatings platform. Founder Terry Warren retains a minority stake and joins the board, while Jay Soper continues to lead operations. The deal follows a year of Long Water research into the coatings sector, during which the firm identified a fragmented market of founder- and family-owned contractors supported by recurring maintenance demand. Long Water and Blastco’s management plan to pursue add-on acquisitions to expand geographic footprint, services and customer relationships.
“Industrial coatings is exactly the kind of critical infrastructure services industry we look for at Long Water,” said Neil West, senior managing director at Long Water. “We spent a significant amount of time developing a perspective on value in the industry before engaging, and Blastco stood out for its people, its safety culture and its reputation with customers.”
Founded in 2009, Long Water is a private markets investor with offices in Fargo, Dallas, St Louis and Boston. Ice Miller served as legal counsel to Long Water, and Katz Sapper & Miller was financial and tax diligence adviser.
Source: PE Hub · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing