Sep. 8—The parent company of Asco Aerospace USA, a Stillwater manufacturer of commercial aircraft components, has signed a deal to sell all ownership shares to Montana Aerospace, a Zurich-based manufacturer and supplier of structural parts and assemblies.
The price has not been disclosed. In addition to cash, the shareholders will receive shares of Montana Aerospace stock.
Asco is a privately held company founded in 1954 by Emile Boas, that supplies parts and assemblies made from lightweight materials like aluminum, titanium and composite to aircraft companies like Boeing, Airbus, Bombardier and Embraer.
The Stillwater plant manufactures wing assemblies for Boeing and parts for a number of other aircraft manufacturers using steel and aluminum.
In a letter sent to employees Tuesday and reviewed by the News Press, the company said it has faced difficult years recently due to a major cyber-attack in 2019 and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The commercial airline industry, Asco's customer base, took hits when travel shut down.
When the company announced in 2012 that it was moving into the 71,500 square foot manufacturing facility vacated by Mercruiser in 2011, local and state officials celebrated. Asco was projected to have an economic impact of more than $160 million on the Stillwater area once the plant got to full capacity and was fully staffed. It would make capital investments of up to $100 million and grow to 500 employees earning an average salary of $45,000 by 2015, they said.
The Stillwater facility has never reached that staffing target, and the titanium production area that was planned has not gone active.
Asco temporarily furloughed 64 of its 150 Stillwater employees in February.
A previous deal, in which Asco would have been acquired by former Boeing subsidiary Spirit AeroSystems — an original offer of $650 million that was later reduced to $420 million — fell apart in 2020 before getting approval from the European Commission, according to French newspaper L' Echo.
As subcontractors for aircraft manufacturers, both companies were hurt when airline travel ground to a halt during the pandemic and orders stopped coming in.
The ransomware attack shut down Asco's computer systems, stopped production at its factories and cost the company a total equivalent to almost $24 million according to Asco's annual report, L' Echo reported.
The new deal with Montana Aerospace will guarantee the stability and profitability of the company and anchor its future, Asco said in the letter to employees.
"Montana Aerospace is a leading producer of system components and complex assemblies for the aerospace industry with worldwide engineering and manufacturing operations," the letter reads. "It has approximately 5,000 highly skilled employees at 28 locations on four continents, designing, developing and producing ground-breaking technologies for tomorrow's aerospace, e-mobility and energy industries out of aluminum, titanium, composite, copper and steel. This merger of highly complementary respective skills and capabilities will enable the two companies to better serve their customers as one."
Asco CEO and shareholder Christian Boas, grandson of the company's founder, said in a press release issued by Montana Aerospace on Tuesday that the two companies have a common goal and similar cultures. Being part of Montana Aerospace will give Asco and its joint venture partners the opportunity to expand their worldwide position, he said.
"With the acquisition of Asco Industries, Montana Aerospace will further strengthen its competencies in product design, testing and manufacturing of hard metal components and assemblies for wing and fuselage structures," Montana Aerospace said in the same press release.
The company said its mergers and acquisitions strategy means Asco facilities will be integrated into Montana Aerospace's manufacturing network with the Asco brand being strengthened.
In a letter to Asco employees, Boas said the decision was well-considered and made because Montana is a partner that wants to extend and strengthen the Asco group in the long-term.
The deal is still subject to merger control and foreign direct investment approvals.
Twitter: @mcharlesNP
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