NGK Spark Plug Company to Acquire Wells Vehicle Electronics Business

#aftermarket – In a US$257 million deal, NGK Spark Plug Co., Ltd. has announced the acquisition of Wells Vehicle Electronics from UCI Holdings Corp.

NGK is a leading supplier of spark plugs, wires and oxygen sensors to the automotive market. Wells is a leading supplier of components such as switches, ignition coils and the pressure sensors mainly to the automotive aftermarket.

A statement from NGK says “In order to further strengthen the automotive components business, we have been pursuing various opportunities, including expanding both the product line-up and improving our penetration in various distribution channels.

“Wells is an ideal candidate for our expansion efforts and is a well-known automotive parts manufacturer with more than 100 years of history in the United States. Wells has exposure to the growing segment of vehicle electronics with broad product lines, whose main products include switches, ignition coils and pressure sensors. Wells has built a leading position in the US automotive repair market and is working to increase its sales outside of the US.

“Both parties’ goals are well aligned,” continued the statement. “We believe that the combination of the two will create significant synergies, including offering Wells products, in addition to our products, to the global repair market through our strong international sales network that we have built over many years.

This combination will further strengthen our automotive components business, and also will keep challenging the company to create new businesses.”

The acquisition is slated to close July 1, 2015.