WestRock has entered into agreements to acquire substantially all assets of Plymouth Packaging, a corrugated packaging company, including its Box on Demand systems and its equity interest in Panotec. The announcement was made on December 19, 2017.

IMI Precision Engineering agreed to acquire Bimba, a maker of pneumatic, hydraulic and electric motion products with a US distributor network, for $198 million. Completion is expected in early 2018 subject to merger clearance and ESOP approval.

VanZandt Controls, an OFS Energy Fund portfolio company in Odessa, Texas, acquired the machining assets of Flatland Forge to machine valve packaging components in-house.

IMI plc agreed to acquire Bimba Manufacturing Company for US$198 million, announced on 14 December 2017, and has since completed the acquisition to strengthen its US industrial automation position.

Novolex, a portfolio company of The Carlyle Group, agreed to acquire certain assets and business operations of Shields Bag and Printing Co., a flexible packaging maker in Yakima, Washington. Terms were not disclosed and closing is expected near year end 2017.

Cascades increased its holding in Greenpac Mill from 62.5% to 66.1% by acquiring an additional interest in Containerboard Partners. It also bought the Coyle family's 33% stake in Tencorr Holdings, a sheet stock maker for box producers, for a combined cost of about $21 million.

Japan's Kyoto Seisakusho acquired PMI Cartoning, Inc. of Elk Grove Village, Illinois, to form PMI KYOTO Packaging Systems, which will keep operating from the Illinois site and offer cartoners, case packers, over-wrappers and palletizers.

ONCAP, the mid-market private equity platform of Onex, acquired IntraPac International, a specialty rigid packaging maker, from funds managed by CI Capital Partners on December 4, 2017. Terms were not disclosed.

Praxis Packaging acquired Unette Corporation of Randolph, New Jersey, a personal care packaging company, expanding its offering to liquid, cream and paste products in tubes, bottles, jars and stick packs.

Svoboda Capital Partners sold industrial distributor Blake & Pendleton to Five Points Capital and the senior management team. Svoboda had acquired the company in June 2013 from KLH Capital.

TC Transcontinental completed its acquisition of Ultra Flex Packaging Corp., a flexible packaging supplier in Brooklyn, New York with close to 300 employees, on October 1, 2015. The deal was announced September 1, 2015. Price was not disclosed.

Graham Partners, a private investment firm, announced its acquisition of EasyPak LLC, a thermoformed packaging provider headquartered in Leominster, Massachusetts. Atlas Advisors acted as exclusive financial advisor on the sale, and management retains a minority stake.

EVAPCO Inc. acquired Alcoil USA LLC, a York, Pennsylvania maker of micro-channel and brazed aluminum heat exchangers, forming EVAPCO Alcoil, Inc. which will operate from the existing Alcoil site.

FCX Performance, a flow control distributor, has acquired Houston-based Eads Distribution and Charlotte-based The Massey Company, expanding its footprint to 67 offices nationally.

Medo USA merged with its parent company Nitto Kohki to unify its corporate structure in the U.S., with no change to its structure, location, contacts, pump models, part numbers or pricing.

Mitsubishi Electric announced the acquisition of the Power Device Sales Business of US company Powerex, with completion expected in January 2018.

Anchor Fluid Power, a supplier of flange and inline valve components, acquired Maxbar Inc., the largest US distributor of Walther-Präzision quick connect couplings, based in Houston, Texas. Maxbar will continue operating at its existing Houston facility.

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice funds agreed to acquire a majority stake in SunSource Holdings, a distributor of hydraulic and pneumatic fluid power products in the US and Canada. Terms were not disclosed.

Graphic Packaging Holding will acquire International Paper's North American consumer packaging business for $1.8 billion. The company says the combination with its mills would create an integrated packaging company with potential sales of $6 billion.

WestRock has entered into agreements to acquire substantially all of the assets of Plymouth Packaging, a corrugated packaging company known for its Box on Demand systems. The deal also includes Plymouth's equity stake in Panotec and its US and Canada distribution rights.

Continental has acquired Custom Machining Services, Inc., a Valparaiso, Indiana maker of hose assembly equipment, crimpers and dies, to expand its industrial hose services. Terms were not disclosed.

MCI (Motor Controls Inc) purchased the Flowtronex and Water Equipment Technologies (WET) product brands from Xylem Inc., as reported on 1 November 2017.

Dewitt Barrels Inc and DBI Recycling were sold to Industrial Container Services of Maitland, Florida, which plans to merge the Marne, Michigan company with an Illinois subsidiary. The founding family is retiring, and terms were not disclosed.

Motion Industries, a subsidiary of Genuine Parts Co., reached a definitive agreement to acquire Cedar Rapids-based Apache Inc., a supplier of industrial belts and hoses, with closing expected on 1 November 2017. The deal is expected to add about $100 million in revenue to Motion.

Malvern, Pennsylvania-based JA Moody's parent company has completed its acquisition of Pima Valve, a Chandler, Arizona maker of bronze marine valves. The deal adds design and manufacturing to JA Moody's distribution business.

Nosco, a US printed packaging company, acquired New York-based insert and outsert manufacturer Gooding Company to grow its healthcare business and East Coast presence. The deal adds a manufacturing facility and an expanded range of folded solutions.

Graphic Packaging will own 79.5% of a new partnership combining its businesses with International Paper's North America Consumer Packaging business, with International Paper holding 20.5% valued at $1.14 billion. The deal was announced on 24 October 2017.

Anderson Process, a Midwest process equipment supplier, acquired American Controls Inc., a pump distributor and service provider in Michigan and Northern Ohio, announced October 23, 2017.

AFGlobal acquired the Axon pressure pump technology and product line from Amkin Technologies, a privately held oilfield equipment developer. The purchase lets AFGlobal supply fluid and power ends alongside its pressure pumping systems.

Pelican Energy Partners sold downhole sand protection tool provider Multilift, based in Houston, Texas, to Forum Energy Technologies.

Halliburton bought electric submersible pump technology and services provider Summit ESP of Tulsa, Oklahoma, which has more than 500 employees.

Fluid power distributor Triad Technologies of Vandalia, Ohio acquired Cincinnati-based industrial automation and sensing distributor Rilco Industrial Controls and its subsidiaries.

Chromatic Industries, LLC acquired certain assets and the principal business of Quality Oil Tools, LLC, a maker of oilfield pressure control equipment, in Jennings, Louisiana, and will operate it as a subsidiary.

Anaheim-based MeriCal, owned by Linden Capital Partners, acquired Ogden, Utah-headquartered probiotic manufacturer Global Health Industries, combining their probiotic and supplement manufacturing capabilities. The combined company will employ nearly 550 people at six US sites.

German packaging firm Südpack has acquired Oak Creek-based Seville Flexpack for an undisclosed price, gaining two facilities totaling 156,000 square feet. All 40 employees will remain.

General Electric agreed to sell its GE Industrial Solutions business to a European rival for $2.6 billion. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2018.

CIRCOR International signed a definitive agreement to acquire Colfax Fluid Handling from Colfax Corporation for about $855 million, including $542 million cash, new CIRCOR shares and assumed pension liabilities. Colfax will hold about 16% of CIRCOR after closing.

Polar Service Centers acquired the Linden, New Jersey distribution division of Girard Equipment, which distributes aftermarket tank truck parts, pumps, hoses and refinery equipment. The deal value was not disclosed.

Private equity firm J.H. Whitney Capital Partners acquired Accupac from H.I.G. Capital. Accupac provides outsourced manufacturing and packaging for pharmaceutical and OTC personal care manufacturers. The deal value was not disclosed.

TricorBraun acquired Continental Packaging Associates, a family-owned packaging supplier serving food, industrial, pharmaceutical and cosmetic markets. The company will operate as TricorBraun and keep its management team.

Trask-Decrow Machinery transferred its plant air compressor business to Ingersoll-Rand, its long-time distributor partner. Both companies will share the same location in Scarborough, Maine, while Trask-Decrow keeps its industrial pump and portable equipment business.

Enovation Controls, a Sun Hydraulics subsidiary in Tulsa, Oklahoma, announced a merger with fellow Sun subsidiary High Country Tek, which operates in Nevada City, California. The merger is scheduled for December 31, 2017.

MSD Partners LP agreed to acquire Ring Container Technologies, a blow molder of HDPE and PET plastic bottles based in Oakland, Tennessee. No financial terms were disclosed, and ownership transfer is expected in Q4 2017.

Dragon PES announced the acquisition of a 117,880 sq ft, 19-acre former National Oilwell Varco facility north of San Angelo, Texas, to build API production tanks and pumps for the Permian Basin, with full tank production expected by December 1.

Golden West Packaging Group acquired Heritage Solutions, Capital Corrugated, PackageOne and Packaging Innovators Corporation in Northern California. The deal created a West Coast lamination plant, and the group expects annual turnover above USD 250 million.

Atlas Copco acquired C.H. Spencer & Company, a US distributor of industrial pumps and compressors serving Nevada, Wyoming and Idaho. About 40 employees join Atlas Copco and the price was not disclosed.

Ross Controls announced the acquisition of the industrial division of Automatic Valve Corp., a pneumatic valve maker in Novi, Michigan. The purchase price was not disclosed and Automatic Valve's nuclear division was excluded.

Menasha Corporation acquired ARI Packaging of Alsip, Illinois, a contract packaging and fulfillment provider with five facilities in three states. The business will operate within Menasha Packaging Company.

Atlantic Valve Services, formed by Control Associates and Proconex, acquired the former Pentair Service Operations and Factory Repair center in Bridgeport, New Jersey. The 22,500 square foot facility will remain in use for valve service and inventory.

Japan's Nikkiso closed its acquisition of California-based Cryogenic Industries Inc and Cryogenic Industries AG of Basel, makers of cryogenic centrifugal and reciprocating pumps and equipment for industrial gas and LNG markets. The deal value was not disclosed.