On Friday, A&R Logistics, the industrial supply chain and transportation company owned by $4 billion Chicago private equity firm Wind Point Partners, announced that it is buying RJ’s Transportation, a sector peer in bulk liquid transportation and chemical logistics. Price and other deal terms were not made public. However, the buy marks the latest in a string of acquisitions for A&R, its third involving a liquid chemical supply chain services provider in just 18 months, following similar deals in 2020 for First Choice Logistics and L.T. Hartnett.
Headquartered in Louisiana, RJ’s operates a strategically located shipping network near key routes and ports in the North American chemical supply chain, with most of its loads originating in the Gulf Coast region. RJ’s provides over-the-road liquid bulk transportation for several major North American chemical producers and diversified industrial firms, as well as dry bulk, dry van, LTL and flatbed trucking.
“We are excited to welcome the entire RJ’s family to A&R and we congratulate RJ and his team on building an industry-leading reputation through delivering high quality service to their blue-chip customer base,” said Chris Ball, President and CEO of A&R, saying the acquisition would allow A&R to expand its liquid chemical capabilities and broaden its geographic coverage.
On a tear
Besides being the third liquid bulk shipping deal in recent months, the RJ’s deal marks the sixth bolt-on acquisition for A&R since it was acquired by Wind Point–a boutique private equity firm that invests actively in transportation, logistics, and route-based businesses–in 2019. A&R has since absorbed Blue Water Plastic Transport in June 2019, Plantgistix in November 2019, First Choice Logistics in February 2020, L.T. Harnett in August 2020 and Luckey in April 2021.
It’s also unlikely to be A&R’s last pickup. In a statement on this latest deal, A&R said its acquisition strategy “will continue to focus on acquiring companies that provide dry and liquid bulk transportation, warehousing and logistics services to producers and distributors of chemicals and plastics.”
“Creating a liquid logistics service line of scale was a critical element of A&R’s value creation plan,” Wind Point Managing Director Konrad Salaber said. “The acquisition of RJ’s further expands the reach of A&R’s liquid platform into strategic geographies and allows our team to continue meeting the needs of our customers across the supply chain. We look forward to continuing to build upon the combined network of both companies and fostering the RJ’s legacy.”
In addition to its shipping acquisitions, A&R is also investing in capital goods. The company says its liquid and dry bulk transport divisions will spend more than $10 million on new trucks this year alone, part of a plan to expand its fleet inventory by an additional 100 trucks by the end of 2022.
