Alan Ashlock

Crane Rental Corporation has announced a recapitalisation of the company with a private equity firm in order to continue with expansion plans.

The company has partnered with Hammond, Kennedy, Whitney & Co. Inc. (HKW), a private equity firm, to secure greater financial resources.

Alan Ashlock, Crane Rental's president, says HKW will provide additional financial strength to aggressively fuel the company's growth and maintain its inventory of state-of-the-art equipment.

Crane Rental recently purchased the Manitowoc 31000, a new heavy-lift crawler crane, under financing arrangements. Ashlock says this purchase will increase Crane Rental's ability to serve the power industry.

"This piece of equipment is the largest purchase Crane Rental has ever made, with the price exceeding our capital expenditures for the last two years.

"One of the most appealing aspects of a partnership with HKW is their reputation for assisting strong companies with their next level of growth while allowing existing leadership to continue in current roles," says Ashlock. "It was important for us to be able to continue delivering the same quality service along with maintaining our exemplary safety standards."

PNC and Babson Capital, the mezzanine-funding arm of MassMutual, provided debt financing, and PCE Investment Bankers, an investment bank for middle market companies, initiated the transaction and was financial advisor.