Bluefront Equity-owned Proff Kulde AS, which is a supplier of refrigerant and heating solutions to the aquaculture and fisheries industries, increases its production capacity through the acquisition of Paulsen Sveiseservice AS.
‘We are through this acquisition increasing our capacity for pipe welding and assembly which are important tasks in our production and project deliveries. This means that we can produce and deliver more and faster to our customers,’ said Mathias Ingebrigtsen, managing director at Proff Kulde.
Svolvær-based Proff Kulde is acquiring 100% of the shares in Paulsen Sveiseservice, which is located in Bø in Vesterålen, North Norway.
Welding specialist Paulsen Sveiseservice has five staff, including one apprentice, all of whom will remain with the company, which is led by managing director and founder Jostein Paulsen.
‘We have for many years cooperated with Proff Kulde and know the company and its positive culture well. They have ambitious growth plans both in Norway and internationally. We want to be a part of this in order to create even more jobs here in Vesterålen,’ Jostein Paulsen said, and underlined that Paulsen Sveiseservice will continue to serve existing customers both in Vesterålen and elsewhere.
Proff Kulde has during the past year grown its workforce by approximately 40% and significantly increased the company’s production capacity. In addition, the company has developed and built its own R&D test facility to increase the development speed of future refrigerant and heating technologies.
Proff Kulde is currently experiencing high demand for its technologies, from fisheries, aquaculture and land-based industry. The acquisition of Paulsen Sveiseservice is partly motivated by increased customer demand from Proff Kulde’s heating and refrigerant solutions, and partly to prepare the company for further growth.
‘Welding is time-consuming and there is a shortage of certified welders. Paulsen Sveiseservice will therefore become a fully integrated part of our production line. This provides us with valuable expertise and will enhance our project execution capacity. This makes us even more competitive, especially on larger projects,’ Mathias Ingebrigtsen said.
Proff Kulde’s main product is CO2-based RSW-systems which are suitable for cooling of fish on board fishing vessels and in the land-based aquaculture industry, plus freezing facilities for fishing vessels and land-based fishing industry. Additionally, Proff Kulde supplies heat pump systems for cooling and heating of freshwater and seawater, and industrial ice machines for the production of ice for fisheries and aquaculture.
