Andritz, Austria, has signed a contract for acquisition of Paperchine Inc., owned by AstenJohnson Holdings Ltd., headquartered in Charleston, S.C., USA. Paperchine and its subsidiaries have approximately 180 employees in total and manufacturing facilities in the U.S. (Rockton, Ill, Springfield, Mass., and Tucker, Ga.), Canada (Vancouver), Thailand (Bangkok), and Germany (Maintal). The purchase is subject to approval by the antitrust authorities and is expected to be closed by the end of June 2017. 

Paperchine is a global supplier of highly engineered equipment and services to the paper industry. For Andritz, the acquisition of Paperchine strengthens its presence in North America and adds new products, such as the horizontal GapFormer, SigmaPro headbox, dewatering elements (former Johnson Foils), moisturizer (former VIB), and related service to its offerings for international clients.

"We are very excited about this complementary acquisition that extends the Andritz product range for paper and board machines," said Michael Pichler, SVP, Andritz Global Pulp Drying and Paper Division manager. 

AstenJohnson CEO Kevin Frank noted that "the sale of Paperchine fits with our strategy to focus on growth in technical textiles, including paper machine clothing, advanced fabric, and nonwovens. Our friends and associates at Paperchine have successfully positioned the company as a leading global brand. They will have the opportunity to continue to grow with the support of Andritz, while building on the strong foundation they have established as a part of the AstenJohnson family."

The two companies are excited to be working together on a formal marketing alliance with the equipment supplied by Paperchine and Andritz to better support paper industry customers. More details will be forthcoming as the agreement is finalized.