CP Cases acquired by major international manufacturer

CP Cases is headquartered in the United Kingdom, but has a manufacturing site in Frankford. About 87% of its shares was aquired by Sweden-based Lagercrantz Group AB.  | PHOTO COURTESY OF CP CASES

FRANKFORD — CP Cases, a manufacturer of protective cases for a variety of uses including band equipment, has been acquired by Lagercrantz Group AB as a bid to expand its control product line.

Sweden-based Lagercrantz is a public company that provides products in electronics and the communication industry, as well as manufactures proprietary products. In July, the company reported it had acquired 87% shares of CP Cases, which has a manufacturing site in Frankford.

“CP Cases is a market leader within its niche. Given its vast experience in the sector, few competitors can match their product range, customization capabilities, and fast delivery times. We are a strong believer in the business’s continued international growth, and we see many opportunities to develop it further together with the management,” said Andreas Heder, Head of the Control Division at Lagercrantz Group.

With the acquisition complete, CP Cases will be part of Lagercrantz’s Control Division while CP Cases Founder Peter Ross and General Manager Peter Gill retain 13% of ownership shares.

Founded more than 50 years ago, CP Cases originally catered to big-name British bands like The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Queen, Pink Floyd and Elton John on designing heavy-duty cases to protect instruments and equipment. Since then, the company has branched out to develop protective cases and racks for military, medical, broadcasting and energy uses. 

Clients of the company include NBC, CBS, Lockheed Martin, Honeywell and Cisco Systems, among others.

In 2013, CP Cases arrived in the United States with a new branch based on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. But with business growing, the company eventually settled on southern Delaware, specifically in the Frankford Business Park. A lease indicates the company expects to stay until 2027, although there are five-year renewal options.

In 2022, CP Cases was granted $790,000 in state tax-payer backed grants to fit out a 25,000 square-foot space in the industrial park. 

“It feels safe to partner with a long-term and stable owner who will support our continued development and expansion worldwide,” Ross said in a prepared statement. “I very much look forward to continuing as MD of CP Cases under Lagercrantz’ ownership.”

Between the Frankford and United Kingdom sites, it’s projected that CP Cases has a turnover of $12 million and serves customers across 40 countries. The acquisition is projected to add 2% to the company’s growth on a rolling 12 month trend.

With a market cap of $3.4 billion on the Swedish stock exchange, Lagercrantz has a vast portfolio of businesses, divided between electronics, control technology, technical security and niche products. Its control technology, lifted by CP Cases, includes laser sensor developers and technology for snow plows, among others. Its largest unit in the control division is radon measurement tools.

Lagercrantz Group is active in nine countries in Europe as well as the U.S., China and India through 80 companies under its name.