Klein Tools buys General Machine
Lincolnshire-based Klein Tools, a maker of tools for the construction, electronics and mining industries, said Wednesday it has acquired General Machine Products Co., which had a long-ago tie to the former Bell Telephone companies.
The deal also included General Machine's subsidiary, CBS Products, in the United Kingdom. Terms of the deal were not disclosed and the sale closed on Tuesday.
General Machine, known as GMP, is a supplier of specialty cable tools and equipment, and will continue to operate in Trevose, Pennsylvania, with the same management team, said Thomas R. Klein, Sr., chairman of Klein Tools. w
"The brands GMP and CBS represent a long history of high-quality, innovative tools to a professional user base, consistent with the Klein Tools brand," Klein said. "Following the acquisition, we anticipate continued investment and development to grow the brands with new product introductions."
Founded by engineer George M. Pfundt in 1936, General Machine was started in Philadelphia as a specialty machine shop doing work for the local Bell Telephone company and for the electric utility company. It then expanded to a production shop after landing a contract with Western Electric Co. and formed a close relationship with Bell Telephone Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey, which later became Lucent Technologies. They manufactured prototypes of products for experimental use within the Bell System, the company's website said.
General Machine has about 130 employees. With those additional employees, Klein now has a total workforce of about 1,200.
No layoffs are planned, Klein said.
Klein has seven facilities in five states, including two new state-of-the-art facilities in Mansfield, Texas. The company serves more than 4,000 electrical distributors nationwide.