Kentwood's Borisch Manufacturing purchased by Connecticut-based Amphenol

Friday, Aug 13, 2010

Aviation electronics maker Borisch Manufacturing was quietly purchased by publicly-held electronics giant Amphenol Corp. in July.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Amphenol executives said they bought Kentwood-based Borisch for its expertise, not to dismantle and absorb.

Based in Wallingford, Conn., Amphenol makes a wide range of "interconnect" products ranging from wiring harnesses used in cars and airplanes to high-definition television cables.

Borisch's specialty has been serving defense contractors with wiring harnesses, circuit boards and other electrical hardware.

Borisch Controller Daniel Hislop said the sale should mean good things for the Kentwood business.

"All of our key people have signed on to stay for at least two years," he said.

Hislop said Amphenol has made a commitment to see Borisch's volume increase by 50 percent.

"We don't anticipate many changes, just opportunities," Hislop said.

In a July 21 conference call with analysts, Amphenol CEO Adam Norwitt said Borisch was a good fit that would expand Amphenol's capabilities and provide customers with a one-stop-shop for its wiring and cable products and subassemblies.

Borisch's strength in the military aerospace market was one of the main draws, Norwitt said.

"We view Borisch as an opportunity to expand our offerings to our current customer," Norwitt said in the conference call.

Borisch employs 600 people at its Kentwood facility and recently announced a $7 million expansion that would add 150 more jobs.

Borisch, at 4511 East Paris, is purchasing an adjacent 16,000-square-foot, vacant building at 4489 East Paris for a new machine shop. The machine shop area in the existing facility will be transformed into more production space.

Kentwood Mayor Richard Root said he welcomes the new owners and will be glad to meet with them.

Amphenol was founded in 1942. In 2009, the company reported sales of $2.8 billion. Its shares closed at $42.63 Wednesday, down $2.36, on the New York Stock Exchange.

Source: MLive