Crosby Buys Straightpoint

Robert Ayling, left, of Straightpoint, and Crosby's Robert Desel.

January 3, 2019 - The Crosby Group LLC, Dallas, the world’s largest lifting, rigging, and material-handling hardware company, has bought Straightpoint UK (SP), a leading manufacturer of load cells and force-measuring equipment.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

The acquisition, effective January 2, 2019, includes Straightpoint’s manufacturing facility and headquarters in Hampshire, United Kingdom, which will become Crosby’s center of excellence for load monitoring and measurement. The purchase also includes key SP personnel in the United States.

David Ayling, formerly CEO at SP, steps into a new role overseeing sales, marketing, and product development for all load-monitoring equipment. He reports to Robert Desel, Crosby’s chief commercial officer.

Ayling said: “SP has built a very strong team focused on innovation and high service levels, and we wanted to ensure we could maintain and capitalize on these important features of the company. Crosby’s brand, its channel strength, global reach, and management team will enable us to build on our strengths and take the business to a new level. Becoming part of Crosby represents an opportunity to deliver our solutions to more customers and increase the pace of our innovation. It is an exciting new chapter for SP, its team members, and customers.”

Desel said: “We’ve had a close relationship with SP for quite a while—its load shackles are based on the Crosby G2130 shackle, and we use SP products on our Safe Rigging trucks. SP’s position as a leader and innovator in load measurement and monitoring, and the opportunity to integrate its technology into our already strong portfolio, made this a compelling addition to Crosby. Safe lifting is in Crosby’s DNA and load monitoring is a critical part of that equation. Monitored lifts are inherently safer and we can now increase adoption of this best practice on a global scale.”

Desel continued: “The acquisition is focused on growth. SP already represented a force in the marketplace, and, as part of Crosby, we can position its products and expertise closer to the point of use and increase the pace of innovation.”

Ayling confirmed that SP will maintain its commitment to non-rigging markets, such as the weighing sector.