HASTINGS, Mich. – Hastings Manufacturing Co., a nearly 100-year-old global manufacturer of piston rings, has been acquired by RFE Investment Partners, together with management. 
RFE Investment Partners is a private equity firm based in New Canaan, Conn., with more than 30 years of experience investing in growth companies with strong management teams operating in the manufacturing and service sectors. RFE is actively investing its eighth fund and currently manages more than $450 million in committed capital.
“We are very excited to partner with RFE Investment Partners and continue to grow the business,” said Hastings President and CEO Bob Kollar. “RFE has a strong track record of acquiring businesses and successfully taking them through their next phase of growth.”
“Hastings Manufacturing Co. has great brand recognition, world-class manufacturing and a strong leadership team,” added Jim Parsons, managing director and partner at RFE. “We see tremendous opportunities for Hastings Manufacturing Co. and are excited to become partners in their future growth.”
In 1915, Hastings Manufacturing began producing a wide range of automotive components, including oil pumps, bumpers and luggage carriers, from a manufacturing plant in Hastings, Mich. Eight years later, the company introduced its first piston rings, which would grow to become the centerpiece of its business. Recognized by the automotive, industrial, lawn & garden, engine/compressor community for its technical innovations, Hastings Manufacturing has enjoyed many decades of growth.
Today, the company designs, processes and manufactures piston rings globally for the worldwide engine manufacturing and remanufacturing industries. Hastings holds TS16949 and ISO14001 registrations, and is an approved piston ring supplier to aftermarket specialists and OEMs worldwide.
