Generational Group Advises Eastman Fire Protection Company in its Sale to CertaSite

By Generational Group

09/14/2023

Generational Group, a leading mergers and acquisitions advisor for privately held businesses, is pleased to announce the sale of its client Eastman Fire Protection to CertaSite. The transaction closed September 1, 2023.

Eastman Fire Protection Company (Eastman), located in Troy, Michigan, is one of the largest authorized Ansul Distributors in the Midwest. Eastman also distributes Brooks Equipment and Badger. In addition, the Company sells and services brands such as Amerex, Rawhide, EXCAB, Fenwal, Fire Tech, Building Reports and many others.

The Eastman focus on portable fire extinguishers and pre-engineered Ansul Suppression systems dates back 40 years. They also sell a host of related fire protection products and provide a variety of inspection services covering Portable Extinguishers, Sprinkler Systems, Fire Pumps, Backflow, Kitchen Systems, Vehicle Systems, Eyewash Stations, Exit and Emergency Lights, Alarms and Fire Doors.

CertaSite, a commercial fire protection and life safety company headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, was founded in 2018. Serving more than 30,000 customers in 21 locations, CertaSite provides the highest levels of customer service, responsiveness, building safety and code compliance to customers across the Midwest. The Company goes beyond compliance, focusing on partnerships and professionalism while providing customers with a simplified and dependable solution to managing all the fire protection and life safety systems in commercial buildings.

“CertaSite is the perfect partner to build on the foundation laid by our employees and customers,” said Eastman owner Doug Cheesman. “With CertaSite, we have a unique opportunity to blend our knowledge base with a technology-based platform that offers new product lines, is professional and rooted in best practices, and provides significant value for customers.”

With more than 45 years of presence in the area, Eastman’s reputation will allow it to grow under CertaSite within its current customer base and expand in new markets. All of Eastman’s employees retained their jobs in the acquisition to join the CertaSite family.

“We are grateful to Doug and the entire Eastman family for their continued partnership throughout this process, particularly Kathy D’Angelo, who was so instrumental throughout many aspects of the process,” said Jeff Wyatt, CEO of CertaSite. “We are committed to preserving the legacy these dedicated professionals built and recognize and respect their strong local presence.”

Generational Group Executive Managing Director of M&A – Central Region, Michael Goss, and his team, led by Senior Managing Director, Julie Sandoval, closed the deal. Executive Managing Director Bill Kushnir established the initial relationship with Eastman.

“This was a great opportunity all the way around. Not only was this an ideal fit, but the level of professionalism of both sellers and buyers made for a smooth transaction,” said Sandoval.