Lewis-Goetz acquires G&H Pumps and Compressors

Industrial Distribution staff -- Industrial Distribution, 7/2/2008 6:50:00 AM

Lewis-Goetz  Inc. acquired G & H Pumps and Compressors Inc., a Bossier City, La., manufacturer of pump repair and hydraulic services used in the land-based oil and gas drilling industries.

“They represent products but are also a service organization, as we are,” Jeffrey Crane, president/CEO of Lewis-Goetz, told Industrial Distribution. “It was a diversification opportunity for us as this is an opportunity to expand into oil and gas exploration.”

Lewis-Goetz acquired Samson Industrial about a year ago—a deal with which Crane says he is very pleased for, among other reasons, opening the door for Lewis-Goetz in Louisiana.

“Samson gave us a strong footprint in the Louisiana market,” Crane said. By making the G & H deal, Lewis-Goetz expands its presence in the Gulf Coast region while also adding to its overall product offerings.

G & H Pump's main customer base is the oil exploration industries operating in the Shreveport, La., market and the Texarkana region. G & H also specializes in hydraulic and pneumatic repairs, explains G & H president Darrell Gilbert, who will remain with the company.

"It's a great merge for us," Gilbert says of the acquisition. "What we do meshes nicely with [Lewis-Goetz.] 

Earlier this year, Lewis-Goetz acquired JA-MAR Conveyor and Components, a Bellaire, Ohio-based provider of conveyor system installation and services. The G & H Pump acquisition will almost certainly not be their last one this year.

“The industrial distribution and industrial rubber fields are still fragmented in the United States and Canada,” Crane said. “Our historical growth has come through acquisitions. It’s a strategy we’ve pursued for 20 years.”

Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Lewis-Goetz ranked 28th in Industrial Distribution’s Big 50 list of distributors with 2007 sales of $250 million.