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The eBearing News
October 7, 2004
Timken Divests Kilian Bearing
to Genstar and Management Group
copyright © 2004 eBearing Inc.
The Timken Company (USA) is divesting its Kilian specialty bearing business to a consortium
of company management, backed by California-based private equity firm Genstar Capital LP.
Kilian Manufacturing Corporation (USA) and Kilian Canada ULC (Canada) are included in the
transaction. Both were divisions of Torrington, which Timken acquired from Ingersoll-Rand
in 2003. Torrington had acquired Kilian in 1975.
Insiders told eBearing that Timken decided Kilian was not a good strategic fit early in the
Torrington acquisition. But it did not want to risk having Kilian sit on the market waiting for a buyer
or spread management too thin by diverting attention to Kilian which would be better spent on Torrington.
Founded in 1922 in Syracuse, New York, by Frederick Kilian, the company moved to its current Syracuse facility
in 1939. The plant was expanded in 1997 and now totals approximately 96,000 square feet. The Canadian
facility is in Etobicoke, outside Toronto.
Kilian manufactures bearings under the Argosy, Kilian and Kilrol brands. Sales in
2003 were approximately USD $40 million.
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Kilian bearings
(courtesy Timken/Torrington)
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Kilian's product line is primarily medium-to-high-volume specialty bearings, mounted or unmounted, engineered
and manufactured for a specific application. Some of those applications include passenger van rolling
door hinges, automotive steering columns, and furniture mechanical components such as in reclining chairs, sliding
partitions and lumbar supports. Kilian specialty bearings are also found in wheelchairs, exercise equipment,
aircraft, business machines, agricultural equipment, and food processing equipment.
The company's market strength has traditionally been that it can not only engineer and produce
specialty bearings, but can do it from a wide variety of materials and a wide range of sizes.
Materials commonly used include 52100, other carbon steels, stainless steel, and various engineered
polymers. Sizes can range from 0.125" ID to 6" OD, ground, unground, or semi-ground.
Kilian also produces a lineup of standard make-to-stock bearings: single-row and double-row ball bearings,
flanged ball bearings, cam followers, and CB14 conveyor bearings.
Kilian currently employs approximately 345 people; 195 at its U.S. operation in Syracuse,
and 150 in Toronto. Employment has declined steadily in recent years -- the company reported Syracuse had
300 employees in 2000, 265 in 2003, and 195 today -- as a sluggish economy and declining demand have
hurt sales.
International competition has also been catching up with Kilian. Traditionally, difficult logistics,
language barriers, quality issues, and a myriad of other obstacles have insulated North America's specialty
bearing manufacturers from overseas competition.
But widespread adoption of modern manufacturing techniques, sales and engineering offices set up
in North America, and more reliable freight deliveries have put overseas bearing manufacturers -- particularly
from China, Taiwan and Korea -- in a position to compete head-to-head against North America's entrenched
specialty bearing manufacturers.
Even though there is little or no overlap to Timken's product lines, Kilian's bearings, manufacturing
processes and target markets are not a strategic fit with Timken. Nor was Kilian apparently a good fit with
Torrington; former Torrington executives told eBearing Kilian was essentially on its own, a
problem not helped by Torrington's strained relations with parent company Ingersoll-Rand.
Timken President and CEO, Jim Griffith, said, "While Kilian is not a strategic fit for The Timken Company
since its products and applications are outside our traditional areas, we believe Kilian will benefit from
a management team focused solely on its products and its industry."
William Duff, President and CEO of Kilian, said, "We are very excited about the potential of this business.
Kilian has a wide customer base of nearly 500 OEMs, expertise in designing custom solutions for its large
customer base, and strong engineering and manufacturing capabilities. We expect to leverage all of these
strengths to further enhance Kilian as a successful, profitable enterprise."
Genstar Capital Chairman and Managing Director, Jean-Pierre Conte, said, "With management's experience
in building basic industrial businesses, Genstar believes that we can further build upon Kilian's
market-leading position in North America to capitalize on new opportunities to deliver growth
both organically and through add-on acquisitions and ultimately deliver value for Kilian's
customers and shareholders."
The transaction is expected to close by the end of October, 2004. Terms were not disclosed,
although investors will eventually find the details in SEC regulatory filings by Genstar and Timken.
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printer-friendly version
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- by Bruce A. Carr
from individual research,
tips and commercial sources.
Bruce Carr edited this content.
Copyrighted material; unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
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Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.
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eBearing.com ... for everything that moves™
Entire contents Copyright © 1999-2011, eBearing Inc. All rights reserved.
eBearing.com and "... for everything that moves" are registered trademarks of eBearing Inc.
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