News

Littleton, CO – April 1, 2024 – Western Hydro, a subsidiary of Colorado-based Headwater Companies, announces the opening of its second branch in Kansas.  The Wichita, KS branch, located at 818 Orme St., is the 13^th location for Western Hydro and the 91^st location for Headwater Companies.

 “We are very excited to open up a new location in the Wichita market and have the opportunity to serve the contractors and drillers of Kansas with a second location” says Buzz Mills, President of Western Hydro.

 Serving the Western region of the United States since 1977, Western Hydro is a wholesale supplier of drilling supplies, well service equipment, water pumps and accessories, and water treatment and wastewater handling equipment. Western Hydro aims to serve contractors with the highest quality, most competitively priced products, coupled with support and service second to none.

 Headwater Companies, LLC is a collection of leading distributors focused on groundwater, wastewater, water treatment and other products and services in water equipment markets. It delivers quality products and leading brands to the industry, providing contractors with the availability and service they demand to meet their application challenges.

Fort Wayne, IN – January 4, 2021 - Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ: FELE) announced today that on December 31, 2020 it acquired Gicon Pumps & Equipment Inc. of Lubbock, Texas for $27.9 million in a cash transaction. Gicon is a professional groundwater distributor operating seven locations in the state of Texas. Gicon has approximately $68 million of consolidated annual sales.

DeLancey Davis, President of Headwater Companies, the wholly owned Distribution Segment of Franklin Electric, commented:

“We are pleased to add Gicon to the Headwater family. The team at Gicon has served the pump industry and related water resource markets for over 40 years and has an outstanding reputation within the industry for quality service and technical depth. The acquisition of Gicon adds to Headwater’s commitment to the critical groundwater markets, provides geographic expansion in the Texas market and further fulfills our objective of being the leading source for water systems solutions distribution in the U.S.”

Headwater Companies, LLC is a collection of leading groundwater distributors. Headwater is a focused groundwater distribution organization that delivers quality products and leading brands to the industry, providing contractors with the availability and service they demand to meet their application challenges. Franklin Electric is a global leader in the production and marketing of systems and components for the movement of water and fuel. Recognized as a technical leader in its products and services, Franklin Electric serves customers around the world in residential, commercial, agricultural, industrial, municipal, and fueling applications.

Fort Wayne, IN – April 10, 2017 - Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ: FELE) announced today that it has reached agreement to acquire controlling interests in three distributors in the U.S. professional groundwater market. Franklin Electric will acquire 2M Company Inc. of Billings, Montana; Western Hydro Holding Corporation of Hayward, California and Drillers Service, Inc. (DSI) of Hickory, North Carolina for approximately $89 million in the aggregate, which includes assumed debt. The 2M and Western Hydro transactions have closed and the Company expects the DSI acquisition to close before the end of the second quarter 2017.

Gregg Sengstack, Franklin Electric’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented:

“The specialized groundwater distribution channel in the U.S. through which we sell our products is an important element in the ultimate sale, support and specification to the installing contractors. Working in partnership with our distributors, Franklin Electric has developed a broad array of products and systems solutions that will only grow as regulatory and efficiency demands increase in North America.

Over the last several years, Franklin Electric has worked closely with the management of these three companies and the leadership of other strategic distribution partners. These relationships have provided us with insight into and appreciation for the value proposition offered by water systems distribution. By acquiring Western Hydro, 2M and DSI, including the stand-alone 2M/DSI joint venture, Franklin Electric is forward integrating into this channel with four strong, customer focused organizations competing in the market, increasing our commitment to the entire channel and the installing contractor base. Our new distribution entity, with a national footprint of sixty locations and nearly 500 employees, will be the largest in the industry.”

Franklin Electric will operate the acquired distributors in an entity named Headwater Companies, LLC. The Company has named DeLancey W. Davis, a twenty-five-year industry veteran including the last eleven as an executive officer of Franklin Electric, as President of Headwater Companies, LLC. Mr. Davis will have overall leadership responsibility for the new Headwater Distribution segment and will begin to immediately integrate the three acquisitions into a single operating unit.

For financial reporting purposes, as of the second quarter, all the acquired entities will be wholly owned subsidiaries and included in the Company’s consolidated results. The Headwater Distribution segment will be reported separately from the existing Water Systems segment, which will continue to report the results of the global water manufacturing business. The new segment is expected to have operating income margins of approximately 4 to 6 percent and pre-tax return on capital measures consistent with historical Franklin Electric returns after certain integration actions are complete.

The new segment will have approximately $275 million of consolidated annual sales and is expected to be neutral to the 2017 adjusted earnings per share guidance of $1.77 to $1.87 the Company has provided.

The earnings from the acquired companies are expected to add twelve to fourteen cents to Franklin Electric’s 2018 adjusted earnings per share.

Mr. Sengstack added;

“By forward integrating into distribution in the U.S., Franklin Electric is taking a logical next step in our evolution as a groundwater pumping systems company. This action places Franklin Electric shoulder to shoulder with the key decision makers in this end market—distributors and the installing contractors. The Headwater companies will continue to operate as full line wholesale distributors with a focus on total water systems support, including products from all industry manufacturers. Headwater will maintain a laser focus on supporting the professional installing contractor.”

A conference call to review this announcement will commence at 9:00 am EDT on Tuesday, April 11, 2017.  The webcast will be available in a listen only mode by going to:

http://edge.media-server.com/m/p/bmtk5gu5

If you intend to ask questions during the call, please dial in using (877) 643-7158 for domestic calls and (914) 495-8565 for international calls.  The conference ID is: 3677145

A replay of the conference call will be available Tuesday, April 11, 2017 at 1:00 pm EDT through 1:00 pm EDT on Tuesday, April 18, 2017, by dialing (855) 859-2056 for domestic calls and (404) 537-3406 for international calls.  The replay passcode is: 3677145.

Franklin Electric is a global leader in the production and marketing of systems and components for the movement of water and fuel. Recognized as a technical leader in its products and services, Franklin Electric serves customers around the world in residential, commercial, agricultural, industrial, municipal, and fueling applications.