Founded in 1926 in Portland, Oregon as Tom Benson Glass Company, Benson Industries put in the curtain walling for Tower One (The Freedom Tower) of the new World Trade Center in New York, the New York Times headquarters and the Wilshire Grand Center in Los Angeles.
It is considered to be a leader in design, engineering, fabrication and installation of custom unitized curtain wall and glass solutions.
Permasteelisa has bought the business from investment company Berkshire Hathaway. The
terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Benson maintains offices across California, Washington and Oregon in the USA with additional design and engineering facilities in Singapore, the Philippines and Mexico.
With the acquisition of Benson, Permasteelisa significantly expands the size and scope of its operations across North America.
“The expansion of our North American footprint is a crucial component of our long-term growth strategy, and this acquisition is an exciting milestone on our path toward achieving it,” said Permasteelisa chief executive Liam Cummins. “The highly capable team joining us from Benson has an excellent track record and shares our commitment to providing the very best service to our clients. With Benson’s West Coast presence and complementary glass and curtain wall offerings, this acquisition is truly a ‘win-win’ for our customers, suppliers and teams.”
Supported by Permasteelisa Group’s resources, Benson will operate as a standalone business within Permasteelisa North America. Lance Howard, president of Benson since 2016, has been named chief executive of the combined North American business.
“As a leading international façade specialist, Permasteelisa Group is the ideal destination for Benson’s team,” Howard said. “Permasteelisa’s deep industry experience and international presence will enable us to expand our technical offering and access new design and production resources worldwide. By leveraging our capabilities with Permasteelisa Group’s global reputation for excellence, we will be able to further enhance our ability to service our clients. I look forward to what is ahead in this next chapter for our newly united organisation.”
Permasteelisa has its headquarters in Italy, where it began in the 1970s, but is owned by US industrial conglomerate Atlas Holdings, which last week was revealed as the buyer of Lendlease Europe. [See report here.]
