Armtec Earmarks Groupe Tremca Assets For Con-Force Division

Armtec officials anticipate an early May closing on a $45 million deal for Groupe Tremca, a Saint-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Quebec-based producer of concrete pipe and architectural, structural and utility precast

Sources: Armtec Infrastructure Income Fund, Guelph, Ontario; CP staff

Armtec officials announced a May 11 closing on a $45 million deal for Groupe Tremca, a Saint-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Quebec-based producer of concrete pipe and architectural, structural and utility precast. The business will join the suitor’s concrete platform, created with the late-2007 acquisition of Calgary-based Con-Force Structures.

“Groupe Tremca’s addition to our Con-Force division will significantly strengthen the Fund’s competitive position in Quebec, which is one of the most active infrastructure markets in the country, says Armtec CEO Charles Phillips. With annual sales of approximately $28 million and 180 employees, he adds, Groupe Tremca is a well-established business whose solid reputation, gifted management team, and product line complement Con-Force.

Groupe Tremca’s assimilation into the Con-Force division figures to mirror that of precast operators Armtec acquired in 2008: Burnco Concrete Products Ltd., Calgary; Brooklin Concrete and Boucher Pre-Cast Concrete Ltd., Ontario; and, A.E. Concrete, B.C. Durisol Inc., an Ontario producer of precast retaining wall and highway sound barriers, was also acquired last year but positioned as a stand-alone division. From Con-Force Structures to the Groupe Temca deal, Armtec has invested nearly $325 million creating a precast and precast/prestressed concrete franchise alongside its namesake division, specializing in HDPE and corrugated steel drainage products and engineered structures for short-span bridges and water management.