Hills sells plumbing and buys into health
Hills Holdings announced today the sale of its wholly-owned L.W. Gemmell plumbing supplies business to leading plumbing manufacturer, Zurn Industries.
It also announced two acquisitions; Victorian-based Merlon Health Communications and Queensland-based HTR (Hospital Television Rentals).
Hills managing driector Ted Pretty said the sale of the LW Gemmell business completed the wide-ranging sale of assets outlined by Hills last year as part of the group’s restructuring initiatives and strategic settings.
The sale of the L.W. Gemmell business follows other asset sales by Hills in recent months including Bailey Ladders, its assistive equipment care business, the divestment of Hills’ 47.8 per cent shareholding in Korvest Limited and the recent announcement of the agreed sale of the wholly-owned Fielders and Orrcon steel operations to BlueScope (subject to regulatory approval).
The sale of L.W. Gemmell, for an undisclosed amount, is not material to the sales and earnings of the Hills Holdings Group, the company said in a statement to the stock exchange today.
The Gemmell business was founded 40 years ago by Les Gemmell with a focus on specialised plumbing products such as tank-fed flush valves and thermostatic mixing valves.
The business became a division of Hills Industries in February 2008, after which it expanded into Queensland and the Northern Territory, adding to its other interstate offices.
Hills’ acquisition of Merlon Health Communications and Hospital Television Rentals is effective immediately with sales agreements signed today.
Hills paid $33.5 million with additional earn outs payable subject to earnings performance next financial year.
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The company said today the transactions will be cash funded from its existing facilities.
“We are very pleased to announce these acquisitions which are consistent with management’s strategy to focus on delivering integrated solutions into trusted environments,” Ted Pretty said.
“The health and aged care markets are two of the segments that we are targeting, and these businesses are number one and two in their product segments.”
On a combined basis Hills will have a presence in over 300 Australian hospitals and aged care facilities servicing approximately 40,000 beds.
By acquiring Merlon and HTR, Hills has positioned itself as the #1 provider of communications, nurse call, monitoring and entertainment systems for the hospital and aged care sectors. The company will also have a presence in New Zealand.
