Vance Street Announces Sale of Micronics Engineered Filtration Group to PX3-Owned Cleanova

Micronics and Cleanova to Become One Expanded Global Entity

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn., March 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Vance Street Capital ("Vance Street") today announced the sale of Micronics Engineered Filtration Group ("Micronics" or the "Company"), a global provider of aftermarket and OEM filtration equipment and consumables, to Cleanova, a portfolio company of pan-European private equity firm, PX3 Partners ("PX3"). 

Founded in 1983, Micronics is a global provider of aftermarket and OEM filtration equipment and consumables. With a team of 1100+ employees, the Company delivers customers an unparalleled combination of filter media, advanced filtration equipment, filtration services, and aftermarket parts. Customers span the mining and mineral processing, energy and power generation, battery recycling, chemical manufacturing, pigments and dyes, food and beverage, steel and iron processing, aggregates, cement and asphalt, pharmaceutical and biotech, and water/wastewater treatment end markets.

Vance Street first acquired Micronics from its founder in 2013 and made four subsequent add-on acquisitions.  In 2022, Vance Street then invested in Micronics through its first single asset continuation fund (VSC EV1 LP or "EV1"). Under EV1's ownership, Micronics completed acquisitions of National Filter Media (carveout from Alsco), AFT (carveout from FLSmidth), Solaft Filtration and Action Filtration. Through organic growth initiatives, M&A, new product development and a relentless focus on operational improvements, Vance Street helped increase Micronics' EBITDA approximately 10x since originally partnering with the founder. This transaction marks the first realization for a Vance Street continuation fund.

"The Micronics story is one that perfectly encompasses Vance Street's playbook. We saw an opportunity to build out a business with mission critical consumable products that preserve and protect the environment, invested heavily in the right systems to institutionalize the Company, and recruited CEO Chris Cummins and his team to execute on our strategic initiatives," said Nic Janneck, Partner at Vance Street. "We are proud to have played a significant part in the transformation of a small, founder owned business into a leading independent aftermarket filtration platform in North America."

"We would like to thank Chris and the leadership team at Micronics for their hard work and dedication. People are the most important resource in any successful company, and we are proud of the team and their success," said Brian Martin and Mike Janish, Managing Partners at Vance Street. 

"Vance Street has been instrumental in building Micronics into one of the leading filtration platforms in North America. Their strategic vision and support helped us execute on organic growth initiatives, operational improvements and M&A, enabling us to meet the unique needs of our customers and help them operate in adherence with the strictest environmental and safety standards, creating a safer and more sustainable future," said Chris Cummins, Chief Executive Officer of Micronics.

As part of the transaction, Chris Cummins will assume the role of Chief Executive Officer of the combined business, which will retain Cleanova as its name, and Vance Street and Micronics management will both reinvest significantly in the platform.

While both businesses already operate globally, the combined company will benefit from Micronics' strong presence in North America and Cleanova's leading position in EMEA. Similarly, Micronics' leadership in air filtration solutions will be complemented by Cleanova's specialization in liquid filtration.  

The transaction is expected to close in Q2 2025.  Lincoln International and Baird served as financial advisors and Paul Hastings LLP acted as legal advisor to Micronics and Vance Street Capital on the transaction.  BofA Securities and Santander served as financial advisors and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP served as legal advisor to Cleanova and PX3. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

About Vance Street Capital LLC

Vance Street Capital is a middle-market private equity firm focused on investing in highly engineered solutions businesses across the industrial technology, medical, life science, aerospace and defense sectors. Vance Street works with management teams and family owners to accelerate revenue growth, improve operations and acquire strategic assets for the companies in their investment portfolio. For more information please visit: www.vancestreetcapital.com.

About Micronics Engineered Filtration Group

The Micronics Engineered Filtration Group is a leading privately-held industrial filtration solutions provider providing Total Engineered Filtration Solutions globally. With a team of 1100+ employees, the company provides customers with an extensive range of bespoke Pressure Filtration, Vacuum Filtration, and Air Filtration Solutions to meet their precise process, environmental protection, and compliance needs. Micronics serves customers' liquid and air filtration needs in demanding industries including mining and mineral processing; cement, asphalt, lime, and aggregates; power generation; steel; battery recycling; chemical and specialty chemical manufacturing; food and beverage; pharmaceutical and biotech; and water/wastewater treatment.

Dating back to 1906, the Micronics Engineered Filtration Group combines strong, trusted industrial filtration brand names including Micronics, Action Filtration, SOLAFT^® Filtration Solutions, Advanced Filtration Technologies ("AFT"), National Filter Media ("NFM"), FilterFab, Southern Filter Media ("SFM"), C.P. Environmental ("CPE"), United Process Control ("UPC"), AeroPulse, Midwesco Filter Resources, ("Midwesco"), and Fabricated Filters. Learn more at www.micronicsinc.com.

About Cleanova

Headquartered in Ireland, Cleanova was formed out of an industrial carve-out in October 2023 and is controlled by PX3 Partners, the London headquartered private equity firm. The company leverages innovative thinking and established technology to deliver mission-critical filtration solutions and contribute to a cleaner tomorrow. With a team of 400 skilled employees, Cleanova delivers cutting-edge filtration products to a diversified international customer base operating in a wide range of industrial end-markets. Cleanova serves its customers through six international brands, Allied Filter Systems, Dollinger, Plenty, Shawndra, Sidco, and Vokes, which have market-leading positions underpinned by Cleanova's technology and engineering capabilities. Learn more at www.cleanova.com.

About PX3 Partners

PX3 stands for purpose, passion, and performance. It is a pan-European private equity firm founded in 2021 by Petter Johnsson, Gianpiero Lenza, and Sébastien Mazella di Bosco, with headquarters in London. It invests behind transformative themes and targets companies operating within select segments of the business services, consumer and leisure, and industrials sectors with strong business fundamentals. PX3 is committed to supporting ambitious entrepreneurs and management teams build great businesses through transformative growth internationally and operational improvement. Learn more at www.px3partners.com.

Media Contact:
Natalie Yates
Head of Business Development and Investor Relations
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SOURCE Vance Street Capital