Northern Crane Services Acquires A-1 Crane & Bridge Rentals

July 5, 2007 • Edmonton, Alberta, Canada-based Northern Crane Services, Inc., a Northwest Capital Appreciation company, has acquired A-1 Crane & Bridge Rentals Ltd. With headquarters in Grande Prairie, Alberta, A-1 was founded more than 25 years ago and is the largest crane operating company based in Grande Prairie. It provides crane services to Northwestern Alberta and Northeastern British Columbia. In addition to crane services, A-1 rents and sells various lengths of portable bridges.

As part of the transaction, NCS welcomes Dean Schmied and his management team to NCS and looks forward to providing a wide range of equipment and resources to A-1's existing customers. A-1 Crane Services will be a wholly owned subsidiary of NC Energy Services, the parent company of Northern Crane Services, and Schmied will regionally manage the Northwestern Alberta and Northeastern B.C. operations.

"We are excited to partner with such a well-established and reputable crane company," said Leo Davis, NCS CEO and co-founder.

 

"The A-1 acquisition is another significant step in our strategy to strengthen our position as the leading provider of lift services in Western Canada," said John Stevens, NCS president and COO. "There should be significant opportunities to offer existing A-1 customers with equipment and resources through our partnership with A-1."

"The partnership is exciting for me and for A-1 customers as we are joining up with longtime friends in the industry and will be able to offer the services our customers demand,” said Schmied, A-1's president. “The availability of crane sizes over our present 125-ton capacity will be a huge benefit to our large service area's requirements."

NCS plans to continue to invest in its and A-1's fleet to ensure that NCS and related companies are the crane companies of choice by our customers and employees.