Genstar Capital has made a significant investment in Truck-Lite Co. LLC, a provider of safety lighting, filtration systems and telematics services for commercial vehicles. Auburn Hills-based Truck-Lite was owned by affiliates of BDT Capital Partners, Koch Equity Development and Penske Corp. As part of its investment, San Francisco-based Genstar acquired BDT and Koch's ownership interests.
"We are very excited to partner with Genstar,” Truck-Lite CEO Brian Kupchella said in a statement. “We believe its investment philosophy aligns extremely well with Truck-Lite's long-term strategy, and will allow us to accelerate our growth plans, continue to invest in new products and markets, and improve our value proposition to our customers and partners."
Genstar Managing Director Rob Rutledge added: "Truck-Lite has a leading position in attractive market segments, with a history of innovation, product development and industry superior technology. For over 60 years, they have worked to build strong brand recognition and we see opportunity to support the continued expansion of the business through growth in new products, technologies, and Truck-Lite's Road Ready telematics systems and look to further expedite that growth by pursuing strategic acquisitions."
Penske CFO Patrick Conroy, a member of Truck-Lite’s board said he looks forward “to continuing our relationship with Truck-Lite and supporting Genstar to accelerate Truck-Lite's growth."
Baird and Barclays acted as financial advisers and Jones Day acted as legal adviser to Truck-Lite. Weil acted as legal adviser to Genstar.
