Ali Group Completes Scotsman Acquisition

It’s a done deal: The Italian foodservice equipment conglomerate The Ali Group has successfully closed on its previously announced definitive agreement to acquire Scotsman Industries, the world’s largest commercial ice-machine company, from a private equity firm. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

The half-century old, closely held Ali Group is headquartered in Milan, Italy. Scotsman joins its roster of more than 60 kitchen equipment manufacturers, including ACP, Adamatic, Belshaw, Beverage-Air, Champion, Coldelite, Edlund Co., Electro Freeze, and Victory in North America.

Scotsman, based in Vernon Hills, Ill., has seven brands, including Crystal Tips,  Ice-O-Matic, Icematic, and Simag, and five manufacturing plants. The company had been owned by Warburg-Pincus since 2009, when it purchased Scotsman from Manitowoc Co. for $160 million. Manitowoc had acquired Scotsman from Enodis Plc as part of a larger deal.

The Ali Group is helmed by chairman/CEO Luciano Berti. Scotsman is headed by chairman/CEO David McCulloch.