Redditch manufacturer makes second major acquisition in as many days

Business News, Manufacturing

By Nicky Godding

3 March 2021

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Yesterday we reported that Redditch-based AIM listed computing and power products manufacturer Solid State plc, had bought Buckinghamshire-based Active Silicon Limited and its subsidiaries for £6.3 million.

The manufacturer is continuing its acquisitive path with the announcement this morning that it has bought West Sussex-based Willow Technologies Limited for £10 million.

Willow Technologies with American Electronic Components Inc. (AEC) (its US based subsidiary) is a manufacturer and value added distributor of electro-mechanical products used in strategic, structural, growth markets.

Gary Marsh, Chief Executive of Solid State, said: "It is very rare to find a company that so clearly meets the strategic imperatives that we have set for the Group. The acquisition of Willow and AEC dovetails nicely into our Value Added Supplies division, increasing our geographic reach and own brand products whilst providing a springboard for growth in the USA. I would like to take this opportunity to welcome the teams at both Willow and AEC into the Solid State Group of companies."

Mark Del Giudice, Chief Executive of Willow Technologies, added: "By joining the Solid State Group, we have become part of a dynamic organisation which shares our approach to providing niche products to new and developing growth markets. Our product portfolios complement one another and we will work together to ensure growth for both our business partners and our staff. I look forward to the next chapter of our business development and becoming part of the Solid State Group's future."

Willow Technologies with AEC brings a range of own brand electro-mechanical relays and contactors under the Durakoolâ brand and a range of glass to metal seals under the Hermasealâ brand. The West Sussex company's range of own brand products significantly enhances the Group's Value Added Supplies division's offering for electric vehicles, EV charging, green tech, medical and military markets.

Willow Technologies, founded in 1989, is a highly respected value added distributor of electro-mechanical components operating within the UK, Germany, Spain and the USA. Willow Technologies' specialisms are in switching, sensing, resistive devices and hermetic seal solutions, the company sells a wide portfolio of electromechanical technologies. Willow is ISO9001: 2015 registered.

American Electronic Components Inc. ("AEC"), founded as Durakool in 1935 and acquired by Willow Technologies in 2006, is based in Indiana USA. AEC specialises in the design, manufacture and distribution of component level, electro-mechanical switching, sensing and glass to metal seal solutions. The company has over 85 years of applications experience with a well-established and loyal customer base. AEC is ISO9001: 2008 and ISO14001:2004 Registered.

By Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe.

After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts.

She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.