Pretium, Novapack to merge

Packaging businesses Pretium Packaging LLC and Novapak Corp. will merge, creating a combined operation with more than $240 million of blowmolded bottle and injection molded preform sales to more than 500 customers from 14 manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and Canada. Pretium Packaging, a custom blowmolder serving the food, pharmaceutical, and personal care markets, is partnering with New York-based buy-out firm Castle Harlan Inc. on the deal to merge with PVC Container's Novapak business. PVC Container is a portfolio company of Cleveland-based buyout firm Kirtland Capital. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter.

The combined business will retain the Pretium Packaging name and operate from headquarters in Chesterfield, MO. Current Pretium management and certain members of Novapak will run the new enterprise, with Keith Harbison, founder and current owner of Pretium, as a significant minority shareholder in the combined business and member of the company's board. Pretium is being advised in the deal by Lazard Middle Market LLC, with Novapak advised by Brown Gibbons Lang & Co.

Pretium President and CEO George Abd said that Pretium and Novapak have focused on small-to-medium-volume, custom-bottle applications, with both experiencing recent growth in polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles. Abd said that Pretium has invested significantly in one-step, wide-mouth PET technology and assets, while Novapak has focused on two-stage, narrow-neck PET and preform manufacturing, giving the combined company complementary businesses and very little customer overlap.

Pretium Packaging was founded in 1992 and through 11 acquisitions in the '90s currently operates nine ISO 9001:2000 rated manufacturing facilities in North America. Headquartered in Eatontown, NJ, Novapak operates five ISO 9001:2000 certified plants in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and South Carolina, with those specializing in medium-to-large-size plastic bottles. —[email protected]