Generational Equity Advises Eastman Fire Protection Company in its Sale to CertaSite

By: Generational Equity via Business Wire

September 14, 2023 at 08:00 AM EDT

Generational Equity, a leading mergers and acquisitions advisor for privately held businesses, is pleased to announce the sale of its client Eastman Fire Protection to CertaSite. The transaction closed September 1, 2023.

Eastman Fire Protection Company (Eastman), located in Troy, Michigan, is one of the largest authorized Ansul Distributors in the Midwest. Eastman also distributes Brooks Equipment and Badger. In addition, the Company sells and services brands such as Amerex, Rawhide, EXCAB, Fenwal, Fire Tech, Building Reports and many others.

The Eastman focus on portable fire extinguishers and pre-engineered Ansul Suppression systems dates back 40 years. They also sell a host of related fire protection products and provide a variety of inspection services covering Portable Extinguishers, Sprinkler Systems, Fire Pumps, Backflow, Kitchen Systems, Vehicle Systems, Eyewash Stations, Exit and Emergency Lights, Alarms and Fire Doors.

CertaSite, a commercial fire protection and life safety company headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, was founded in 2018. Serving more than 30,000 customers in 21 locations, CertaSite provides the highest levels of customer service, responsiveness, building safety and code compliance to customers across the Midwest. The company goes beyond compliance, focusing on partnerships and professionalism while providing customers with a simplified and dependable solution to managing all the fire protection and life safety systems in commercial buildings.

“CertaSite is the perfect partner to build on the foundation laid by our employees and customers,” said Eastman owner Doug Cheesman. “With CertaSite, we have a unique opportunity to blend our knowledge base with a technology-based platform that offers new product lines, is professional and rooted in best practices, and provides significant value for customers.”

With more than 45 years of presence in the area, Eastman’s reputation will allow it to grow under CertaSite within its current customer base and expand in new markets. All of Eastman’s employees retained their jobs in the acquisition to join the CertaSite family.

“We are grateful to Doug and the entire Eastman family for their continued partnership throughout this process, particularly Kathy D’Angelo, who was so instrumental throughout many aspects of the process,” said Jeff Wyatt, CEO of CertaSite. “We are committed to preserving the legacy these dedicated professionals built and recognize and respect their strong local presence.”

Generational Equity Executive Managing Director of M&A – Central Region, Michael Goss, and his team, led by Senior Managing Director, Julie Sandoval closed the deal. Executive Managing Director, Bill Kushnir established the initial relationship with Eastman.

“This was a great opportunity all the way around. Not only was this an ideal fit, but the level of professionalism of both sellers and buyers made for a smooth transaction,” said Sandoval.

About Generational Equity

Generational Equity, Generational Capital Markets (member FINRA/SIPC), Generational Wealth Advisors, Generational Consulting Group, and DealForce are part of the Generational Group, which is headquartered in Dallas and is one of the leading M&A advisory firms in North America.

With more than 350 professionals located throughout 16 offices in North America, the companies help business owners release the wealth of their business by providing growth consulting, merger, acquisition, and wealth management services. The Generational suite of advisory services includes strategic and tactical growth consulting, exit planning education, business valuation, value enhancement strategies, M&A services, wealth management and digital services.

The M&A Advisor named Generational Equity Investment Banking Firm of the Year three years in a row, Valuation Firm of the Year in 2020, and North American Investment Bank of the Year in 2022 as well as Consulting Firm of the Year. The Global M&A Network named Generational USA Investment Bank of the Year in 2023. For more information visit https://www.genequityco.com/ or the Generational Equity press room.