Private Equity Investment Firm Acquires Shelby Aerospace and Defense Manufacturer

Altus Capital Partners, Inc. (“Altus”), a leading private equity investment firm focused on niche middle market manufacturing companies in the U.S., Tuesday announced that Altus Capital Partners II, L.P. along with members of management acquired Models & Tools, which designs and manufactures tight tolerance advanced tooling systems for the aerospace and defense industries. Models and Tools’ senior management team will remain in place and maintain a significant equity stake in the Company going forward. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

The Models & Tools investment is the first in the firm’s second fund, Altus Capital Partners II, L.P., which closed in October with $200 million in commitments.

Greg Greenberg, Co-founder and Senior Partner, Altus Capital Partners, said, “As investors with an exclusive focus on U.S.-based manufacturers with proprietary technology, we feel confident in Models &Tools’ future and its ability to continue to deliver outstanding product offering and service to its aerospace customers. By providing access to additional capital, we will support an excellent management team and fund its growth strategy in this key market sector.”

Models & Tools CEO Jeff Cunningham said, “We welcome Altus to the Models & Tools team. We are excited about the road ahead as we continue to invest in our future and our customers’ success. Our customer commitment of nearly 40 years remains unchanged – to help them address complex production and performance issues through comprehensive program management that incorporates the latest technology and applies innovative solutions.”

Phil Neale, Models & Tools’ President, added, “All of us at Models & Tools look forward to our partnership with Altus. It provides a great opportunity for us to continue the growth that we have experienced and to provide our customers with additional capabilities and capacities. Over the years we have strived to meet our initiatives in the areas of quality, delivery, and price, but it is integrity that drives us. I’m pleased to say that Altus has shown that they possess that same level of integrity.”