Steel Mills

ATI Sells Flowform to Consolidated Boring

Written by Michael Cowden

August 17, 2021

Allegheny Technologies Inc. (ATI) has sold its Flowform Products business to Consolidated Boring Inc. for $55 million in cash.

Proceeds from the sale of Billerica, Mass.-based Flowform will be used to boost ATI’s liquidity and to strengthen its balance sheet, the company said.

coins“While ATI Flowform is a strong performer with a great team serving the defense market, it operates in a segment with competitive dynamics that do not leverage ATI’s strengths and materials,” said Kim Fields, ATI’s executive vice president of high-performance materials and components and of advanced alloys and solutions.

Flowform had been part of ATI’s forged products business. The sale closed on Friday, Aug. 13, and the company has since been renamed American Flowform & Machining LLC.

Consolidated Boring’s acquisition of Flowform was backed by private investors focused on mid-sized manufacturing operations with strong growth potential, ATI said.

M&A expert Dan Sullivan, founder of Chicago-based Montrose Advisors, said during an SMU Community Chat last month that there is approximately a trillion dollars in private equity looking for deals. Sullivan also noted that private equity tends to be most interested in downstream manufacturing operations.

By Michael Cowden, Michael@SteelMarketUpdate.com

Michael Cowden

Michael Cowden is managing editor for Steel Market Update. Cowden has covered the steel industry since 2007. He has since 2014 specialized in flat-rolled steel but has previously reported on steel long products, steel pipe and tube as well as aluminum. Before joining SMU, Cowden held reporting jobs at Fastmarkets AMM in Chicago - where he was involved in launching AMM's daily hot-rolled coil index, the Associated Press in Pittsburgh, and the Cambodia Daily in Phnom Penh. He has also worked as a copy editor and in marketing at the University of Chicago Press. Cowden has a BA in English from the University of Chicago and an MSJ journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Contact him at michael@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7872.

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