Universal Forest Products Purchases Assets Of GeoMatrix

Grand Rapids, MI - Universal Forest Products, Inc. recently announced that a wholly-owned subsidiary has acquired the assets and assumed certain liabilities of GeoMatrix, Inc., a developer and supplier of plastic lattice and other proprietary plastic products. The company's 2005 sales were approximately $19M. According to Universal, the purchase adds a respected supplier of an increasingly popular product, plastic lattice, to the Universal family and expands the breadth of products Universal offers to the Do-It-Yourself/retail market.

GeoMatrix offers plastic lattice panels in five styles, ten colors and two sizes to retailers nationwide and, according to Universal, is the leading supplier of this product. The company also sells other products like plastic privacy screens, decorative polymer fencing and plastic pegboard. GeoMatrix was founded in 1997 by Dick Cantley and operates from offices in Troy, Michigan. Another partner, Bob Erickson, joined the company in 1998. Cantley will work as a consultant to Universal; Erickson will work for Universal and will help guide the transition of the operations.

GeoMatrix becomes the latest acquisition by Universal's wholly owned subsidiary, Universal Consumer Products. Last year, Universal announced the acquisition of several companies, including Maine Ornamental Woodworkers and DecKorators, which supply decorative caps for fence and deck posts, and decorative balusters, respectively, to home improvement retailers and distributors nationwide. Universal also expanded production and distribution of its Latitudes® composite decking and railing lines and added eon® polymer decking to its portfolio to grow its consumer products business.

SOURCE: Universal Forest Products, Inc.