Cablevey Conveyors Acquired by Chicago Firm May River Capital

A Cablevey Conveyors installation. Images courtesy of Cablevey Conveyors.

Chicago-based private equity firm May River Capital has acquired Oskaloosa, Iowa-based Cablevey Conveyors, makers of tubular drag conveyer systems whose installations can be found throughout the coffee industry.

The acquisition was finalized on Dec. 22, on the exact day of Cablevey’s 50th anniversary as a company. A Cablevey representative declined to disclose the financial details of the acquisition to DCN.

“Cablevey’s focus on solving conveyance application challenges using our proprietary cable drag technology, and the resulting dramatic growth has positioned the company as an anchor asset to build a larger conveyance platform,” Cablevey CEO Gary Hall said in an announcement of the deal. “The additional investments now possible with May River allow us to continue to increase market share with existing and top tier customers in our core food and beverage sectors, including tree nuts, coffee and pet food, as well as expand in other growth markets like pharmaceuticals.”

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Through the acquisition, Cablevey is gaining what May River Capital has described as a “sister” manufacturing processing platform in Advanced Materials Processing (AMP), which specializes in material processing for customers in the food, pharmaceutical and chemicals markets.

AMP Executive Chairman Brad Sterner has been tapped to succeed Gary Hall as Cablevey CEO. The conveyor manufacturer will continue to be based in Oskaloosa, where it was founded 50 years ago.

Cablevey told DCN that the company has sold systems to more than 500 domestic and international coffee roasters over the years.

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