TNT Crane & Rigging merges with Allison Crane & Rigging

Houston, TX-based TNT Crane & Rigging has merged with Allison Crane & Rigging, based in Williamsport, PA. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Allison is a full-service mobile crane provider primarily serving the Utica and Marcellus shale basins from its Pennsylvania locations and the Permian Basin from its branch in Pecos, Texas. TNT is a portfolio company of First Reserve, a leading global private equity investment firm exclusively focused on energy, the company said.

Allison was founded in 1976 and has a long history of operational excellence and world-class service through three generations of the Allison family, according to the company. Allison operates 30 cranes with an average age under five years old, serving the oil and gas as well as the pulp and paper, bridge and road construction and other commercial industries.

Pro forma for the merger, TNT has now furthered its presence as a national lifting services provider, expanding its geographic and oil and gas operations to include the prolific shale resources of Pennsylvania and the Permian’s Delaware Basin. TNT now operates approximately 700 cranes through 44 branches across North America and provides full-service capabilities utilizing its portfolio of all-terrain, truck-mounted, rough terrain, crawlers, tower cranes, mobile gantries and rigging solutions with lifting capacities ranging from three tons up to 900 tons, the company said.

“Customers will be better served from a larger and stronger company with greater asset diversity and resource utilization. Employees will have more opportunities within a larger extended family. In addition, this merger creates potential to penetrate new customers with the expanded fleet, geographic footprint, and enhanced manpower.”

Larry Allison Jr., president of Allison, will continue in his current role and be a significant shareholder and member of the executive management team of TNT.

Michael Appling Jr., CEO of TNT, will remain in his position overseeing the merged entity.

“TNT’s partnership with Allison demonstrates our company’s commitment to leadership in the crane and rigging industry and further strengthens our position and market share supporting the nation’s oil and natural gas resource development,” said Appling. “We have an excellent relationship with Larry Jr. that we’ve developed over many years, and we welcome him and the Allison employees to the TNT family. We look forward to working with them as we continue to grow our business and provide tremendous opportunity to our employees.”

Larry Allison Jr. added, “My grandfather started Allison and the legacy continued with my father, Larry Sr. TNT is the right partner for Allison at this point in the growth and development of our business. We have been blessed with amazing employees that have made us who we are today. This merger will allow us to continue to provide superior service to our customers and most importantly expanded opportunities for our employees.”

First Reserve is a global private equity investment firm exclusively focused on energy. With 35 years of industry insight, investment expertise and operational excellence, the Firm has cultivated an enduring network of global relationships and raised approximately USD $31 billion of aggregate capital since inception.

“We continue to be impressed by the capabilities of the TNT team and their commitment to providing customers with safe, reliable crane and rigging operations,” said Gary Reaves, managing director of First Reserve. “We are delighted to welcome the Allison employees to the TNT family and believe there is a great cultural fit between the companies. Since First Reserve’s initial investment in 2013, TNT has completed 4 add-on transactions, continuing to transform the business into one that we believe has built significant value as a provider of national scale. In our view, the Allison merger further enhances TNT’s service offering to its clients, and we look forward to continued momentum.”

Founded in 1985, TNT Crane & Rigging, Inc. is one of the largest crane service providers in North America utilizing hydraulic truck, all terrain, tower and crawler cranes with lifting capacity up to 900 tons, plus a comprehensive inventory of gantry jacks, forklifts, rigging equipment, and tractor/trailers.

With the addition of Allison Crane, the company now has approximately 1,700 employees working from its 44 strategically positioned branch network with a fleet in excess of 700 cranes. TNT serves diverse industries including oil & gas, refining, petrochemical, power and commercial end markets.