Ara Partners Acquires Fluitron to Build Global Platform of Hydrogen Infrastructure Solutions

Industrial decarbonization-focused private equity firm acquires compression manufacturer

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Oct 07, 2021, 06:00 ET

HOUSTON and IVYLAND, Pa., Oct. 7, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ara Partners ("Ara"), a private equity firm that specializes in industrial decarbonization investments, today announced that it has acquired Fluitron Inc. ("Fluitron" or the "Company"). Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Based in Ivyland, Pennsylvania, Fluitron is a market leader in manufacturing industrial gas compression and dispensing equipment, including diaphragm compressors, pressure vessels, and other specialized products. Founded in 1976, Fluitron maintains operations in Ivyland, and sells to customers throughout the world, with its largest presences in the United States, Canada, India, China, Japan, and South Korea. Fluitron's President, Anthony Chiccarine, and Vice President, Robert Chiccarine, will continue to lead Fluitron under Ara's ownership.

Fluitron is well positioned for rapid growth in the coming years as the need for hydrogen infrastructure increases. Given the Company's close relationships with leading participants in the hydrogen economy and its diverse suite of products and aftermarket services, Ara and the management team plan to build Fluitron into a leading global integrated hydrogen infrastructure platform.

"We believe in hydrogen's potential to decarbonize multiple industries, and Fluitron will play a key role in the energy transition," said Tuan Tran, a Partner at Ara Partners. "Fluitron has an exceptional track record of providing high-quality compression equipment and services to its global array of customers, and its expertise in diaphragm compressors positions it to take advantage of the demand for secure, high-pressure compression needs for hydrogen dispensing and storage infrastructure. Tony and Bob are well-respected veterans of the compression industry, and we are confident that Fluitron will continue expanding at a rapid pace under their continued leadership."

"For over 45 years, Fluitron has provided our longstanding customers with engineering customized gas compression equipment," said Tony Chiccarine. "This year alone, we have been working on a record number of hydrogen compression products, and we're confident that Fluitron will continue to grow at a rapid clip over the next decade. Fluitron and Ara have a strong strategic alignment with our mutual focus on the hydrogen economy, and this partnership will allow us to rapidly scale a global one-stop shop of hydrogen compression and storage infrastructure."

"We're very impressed by the business that Tony and Bob have built and the high degree of customer satisfaction they've been able to maintain in both compression sales and aftermarket services," said James Wang, Principal at Ara Partners. "Fluitron has extremely talented and hard-working employees, and the Company's collaborative and innovative culture sets them apart from their peers."

"We're very excited to partner with Ara and accelerate our growth in the distributed hydrogen market," said Bob Chiccarine. "Over the next three to five years we plan to increase the manufacturing capacity of our site, expand headcount, and grow our customer base in new locations and in areas we currently serve."

About Ara Partners

Ara Partners is a private equity firm specializing in industrial decarbonization investments. Ara Partners invests in the industrial & manufacturing, chemicals & materials, energy efficiency & green fuels and food & agriculture sectors, seeking to build businesses that provide significant decarbonization impact. For more information on Ara Partners, please visit www.arapartners.com.

About Fluitron

Based in Ivyland, PA, Fluitron is a market leader in the manufacturing of customized gas compression equipment. Fluitron manufactures diaphragm compressors, pressure vessels, and piston compressors for industrial gas and hydrogen applications, and provides aftermarket services including maintenance, repairs, and spare parts. Founded in 1976, Fluitron currently operates worldwide and has in-house manufacturing, engineering, and design capabilities. For more information on Fluitron, please visit www.fluitron.com.

Contacts
Mark Semer / Alex Jeffrey
Gasthalter & Co. LP.
[email protected]
(212) 257-4170

SOURCE Ara Partners