Ideal Industries to Add SK Hand Tools to Growing American-Made Tool Businesses

Ideal Industries, Sycamore, Ill., is continuing in its quest to own some of the most iconic “Made in America” brands of hand tools. The company has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase certain assets of SK Hand Tools Corp., Chicago, one of the top manufacturers of tools for the professional mechanic market.

SK Tools had filed for bankruptcy protection on June 29, 2010, and Ideal bought it through a bankruptcy auction. The deal is valued at more than $3.5 million, according to Crain’s Chicago Business.Ideal said it will be assuming none of SK’s liabilities.

Doug Spitler, vice president and general manager of Ideal’s Retail and Industrial Divisions, has been named to run the new company. SK Tools will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ideal.

“Acquiring SK Hand Tools will expand our focus on American-made quality, service and value,” Spitler said in a release. “Loyal customers can count on the SK brand being re-energized under Ideal ownership as the premier ‘Made in USA’ line of professional tools.”

This latest move follows Ideal’s acquisition of American tool makers Western Forge and Pratt Read earlier this year, and further demonstrates the company’s ongoing dedication to manufacturing in the United States, said the company release.

Although Ideal is still formalizing its plans, the company said it’s committed to manufacturing SK tools in the United States, either by integrating production into its existing plants or building a new facility. Ideal said it will announce its comprehensive manufacturing plans for SK within 30 days after the sale closes, which was expected this week.

Founded in 1921, SK Hand Tools makes broad line of tools, including

sockets, ratchets, hammers and wrenches for professional mechanics. The company’s lines have evolved over time to make them among the most precise and reliable on the market, Ideal said.

The purchase does not include any employees, plants or real estate.

Ideal intends to sell SK Hand Tools’ portfolio of nearly 4,000 tools under the SK brand through the automotive and industrial channels of distribution.