Thursday, Airgas, Inc. (ARG), a Radnor, Pennsylvania-based distributor of industrial, medical and specialty gases, revealed a definitive agreement to acquire the assets and operations of Refron Inc., a reseller and distributor of refrigerants. The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of July.
Airgas intends to offer employment to about 60 Refron associates working in Long Island City, Baton Rouge and Long Beach. Its owners, Jay and Jerry Kestenbaum, whose father founded the company in 1950, will join Airgas in key roles after the transaction is completed.
Refron, which also provides technical services and refrigerant reclamation services, generated $93 million in revenues in 2007. It will continue to go to market as Refron, and will be integrated with Airgas' existing refrigerant and reclamation business to form a new company, Airgas Refrigerants, Inc.
Chuck Broadus, president of Airgas Specialty Products, has been appointed president of Airgas Refrigerants, effective immediately. After closing of the deal, Jay Kestenbaum will continue to lead the Refron team, and become senior vice president for product management, vendor relationship and marketing for refrigerants, reporting to Broadus. Jerry Kestenbaum will continue as vice president of technology.
Broadus will continue to report to Airgas' Gas Operations Division President Ted Schulte, who will also become president of Airgas Specialty Products that will focus on its industrial ammonia and process chemicals businesses.
Broadus took charge as president of Airgas Specialty Products in April 2006, after serving as vice president of sales and marketing for Airgas West. Prior to joining Airgas in 2003, Broadus served for three years as marketing director for Reliant Energy, Inc. in Houston and spent seven years with BOC Gases. He will continue to be based in Duluth.
ARG closed Thursday's regular trade at $60.33, up $0.26 or 0.43%, on 296,483 shares. The stock dropped 1 cent in the post-close trade.
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