By SCBIZ Staff

FORT MILL -- Compact Power Inc. and its subsidiary companies recently completed a $21 million equity and subordinated debt financing, focused on maintaining the rapid growth of the company.

The financing was obtained from Latigo Partners, a New York-based investment fund, and Peachtree Equity Partners, an Atlanta-based private equity firm. St. Cloud Capital, in Los Angeles, and an investment fund managed by Sanders Morris Harris, in Houston, also remain as continuing institutional investors, along with significant management ownership. 

“We are expanding both our range of products and our distribution channels, and we are encouraged by the demand for our products overseas. We plan to maintain aggressive growth, both internally and through select acquisitions, with a fundamental focus on anticipating and meeting our customers' requirements," said Roger Braswell, CEO of CPI.

CPI, a privately held company based in Fort Mill, is one of the four largest manufacturers of compact utility loaders and attachments, focused on the productivity of field labor in a variety of industries, including landscaping services, irrigation, agriculture, light construction and specialty utility services. 

CPI designs, manufactures, sells and services a full range of compact utility loaders and attachments, for both the domestic market and an increasing number of international markets, including Australia and the United Kingdom. CPI's Compact Power Services subsidiary provides a national equipment service team, with more than 200 field and service personnel.

Earlier this year, CPI announced the acquisition of certain assets of DOC Machine Tool Services of South Carolina Inc., a South Carolina-based maintenance corporation. DOC was founded in 1988 with a primary focus on field service in the machine tool industry. DOC has continued to provide local service nationwide for both the heavy and light industrial markets.

With the completion of the financing, CPI welcomes two new members to the board of directors, Fred Zeidman and Matt Sullivan. Zeidman, former chairman of the board of Seitel, Inc, serves as director of Turnaround Partners, Inc. and was appointed chairman of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council by President George W. Bush in March 2002. Sullivan, formerly with Kidder, Peabody & Co. and Wachovia is a founder and partner of Peachtree Equity Partners.

A portion of the new capital was used to redeem the ownership of Dogwood Equity, a private equity fund which had invested in CPI in 2003.