A cement company with a longtime presence in the Lehigh Valley has been renamed with a familiar moniker.
With the recent completion of FLSmidth Cement’s sale to Pacific Avenue Capital Partners, the company will be known as Fuller Technologies. The Fuller Co. operated for decades in the Lehigh Valley before it was acquired by FLSmidth in 1990.
FLSmidth announced in June that it was selling its cement business to Pacific Avenue, a Los Angeles private equity firm, for about $175 million.
Dennis Cassidy will serve as CEO of the company. He has three decades of experience in industrial leadership.
“This is an exciting moment for our company,” Cassidy said. “As Fuller Technologies, we are embracing our legacy while charting a bold path forward as an independent leader in cement production solutions. In partnership with Pacific Avenue, we are energized to deepen our customer relationships, accelerate innovation, and expand our solution offerings. Our commitment to delivering high-performance, sustainable technologies remains unwavering, and we look forward to shaping the future of the industry together with our customers.”
Fuller will continue providing after-market parts and services for the cement production industry as well as new and replacement equipment for cement plants worldwide. The company has manufacturing locations in North America, Europe and Asia, and its global installed base spans over 1,400 of the world’s approximately 2,700 cement plants.
Its North American headquarters is in Hanover Township, Lehigh County, and it has a 122,000-square-foot plant in Allen Township that opened in the spring. That facility off Howertown Road manufactures and assembles cement pneumatic transport equipment and serves as a distribution warehouse for replacement parts shipped domestically and worldwide. It employs more than 60 workers.
“We are proud to welcome Fuller Technologies into our portfolio,” said Chris Sznewajs, founder and managing partner of Pacific Avenue. “This transaction highlights Pacific Avenue’s expertise in executing complex, cross-border carve-outs and supporting global businesses in achieving sustainable, long-term growth.
“We take pride in being the go-to solution provider for sellers seeking a seamless transition and a strong foundation for their businesses to thrive as independent companies. Under the Fuller name, the team is well-positioned to build on its rich legacy, expand its global reach, and continue delivering the innovative, mission-critical solutions that cement producers around the world rely on,” he said.
The Fuller Co. traces its roots to 1926 when Col. James Wheeler Fuller III launched the company. Fuller, whose father founded the Whitehall Township community of Fullerton in 1870, was president of the former Lehigh Car Wheel and Axle Works before selling out to the Babcock & Wilcox Co.
Fuller’s goal in founding the new company was to continue to develop and sell the Fuller-Kinyon pump, an air-powered conveying system for dry powders. Alonzo G. Kinyon invented the pump to eliminate fire hazards in the transportation of pulverized coal.
Fuller saw the potential of the system for moving cement, the fine gray powder that, at the time, was making the Lehigh Valley famous as the “cement capital of the world.”