Key Takeaways
- • Altair Industries, a newly formed industrials investor founded in 2025 by David Waxman and Michael Livanos (both ex-Stellex Capital), completed its first platform investment by acquiring Central Wire Industries, a specialty alloy wire and cable manufacturer serving aerospace, defense, and mission-critical industrial applications.
- • Central Wire Industries operates 12 manufacturing sites across the United States, Canada, and Europe, serves over 3,000 customers annually, and produces ultra-fine wire, shaped-profile wire, and wire-rope strands from specialty alloys including stainless steel, nickel alloys, and red metals (copper-based products).
- • The acquisition aligns with Altair's stated strategy to invest in North America-based manufacturers positioned to benefit from reshoring trends and increased defense spending, targeting companies with minimum $10 million EBITDA in aerospace and defense, government services, specialty manufacturing, and industrial services sectors.
- • Altair Industries Fund I LP is raising up to $550 million with backing from Taproot Capital; the firm targets middle-market manufacturers capitalizing on supply chain localization and heightened demand for U.S.-based sourcing of mission-critical components.
- • Central Wire has grown through a disciplined acquisition strategy since its 1955 founding, acquiring nine companies between 1989 and 2018 to expand product capabilities and geographic reach; the company is led by President and CEO Paul From and is headquartered near Ottawa, Ontario.
Summary
Altair Industries, a newly launched industrial investment firm founded in 2025 by David Waxman and Michael Livanos—both former founding members of Stellex Capital Management—has announced the acquisition of Central Wire Industries as its inaugural platform investment. The transaction marks Altair's entry into the specialty manufacturing space with a focus on companies positioned to benefit from reshoring trends and elevated defense spending.
Central Wire Industries manufactures specialty alloy wire and cable products tailored for aerospace, defense, and mission-critical industrial applications where component failure is not tolerable. The company draws and shapes metal wire and cable from engineered specialty alloys—including stainless steel, nickel alloys, and red metals (the copper-based family encompassing brass and bronze)—blended for superior strength, heat tolerance, and corrosion resistance. CWI operates 12 manufacturing facilities across the United States, Canada, and Europe and serves over 3,000 customers annually across aerospace and defense, industrial, medical, and energy markets. The company manufactures ultra-fine wire, shaped-profile wire, and wire-rope strands to exacting specifications where buyers demand precise metal properties, tight dimensional tolerances, and extended service life.
Central Wire, founded in 1955 as a fine-diameter red-metal wire producer for paper-manufacturing applications, has built its current scale through a strategic acquisition program. Since 1989, the company has acquired nine businesses: National Filtration (1989), Nucor's South Carolina wire operations (1998), Greening Donald in Canada (2003), Techalloy, a Baltimore-based welding consumables provider (2005), a Wisconsin steel facility from Charter Specialty Steel (2010), Florida-based Strand Core (2014), UK-based Hempel Wire (2015), Indiana-based wire-rope maker Sanlo (2016), and Connecticut-based Loos & Co., a specialty wire and cable maker (2018). The company is led by President and CEO Paul From and is headquartered near Perth, Ontario.
Altair Industries targets North America-based manufacturers with at least $10 million of EBITDA in aerospace and defense, government services, specialty manufacturing, and industrial services. The firm was founded with backing from Taproot Capital and is raising its inaugural fund, Altair Industries Fund I LP, which seeks up to $550 million in commitments. The Central Wire acquisition reflects Altair's thesis that domestic specialty manufacturers are benefiting from increased focus on supply chain resilience and U.S.-based sourcing of mission-critical components, particularly as defense budgets expand and manufacturers relocate production closer to home.
Central Wire Industries manufactures specialty alloy wire and cable products tailored for aerospace, defense, and mission-critical industrial applications where component failure is not tolerable. The company draws and shapes metal wire and cable from engineered specialty alloys—including stainless steel, nickel alloys, and red metals (the copper-based family encompassing brass and bronze)—blended for superior strength, heat tolerance, and corrosion resistance. CWI operates 12 manufacturing facilities across the United States, Canada, and Europe and serves over 3,000 customers annually across aerospace and defense, industrial, medical, and energy markets. The company manufactures ultra-fine wire, shaped-profile wire, and wire-rope strands to exacting specifications where buyers demand precise metal properties, tight dimensional tolerances, and extended service life.
Central Wire, founded in 1955 as a fine-diameter red-metal wire producer for paper-manufacturing applications, has built its current scale through a strategic acquisition program. Since 1989, the company has acquired nine businesses: National Filtration (1989), Nucor's South Carolina wire operations (1998), Greening Donald in Canada (2003), Techalloy, a Baltimore-based welding consumables provider (2005), a Wisconsin steel facility from Charter Specialty Steel (2010), Florida-based Strand Core (2014), UK-based Hempel Wire (2015), Indiana-based wire-rope maker Sanlo (2016), and Connecticut-based Loos & Co., a specialty wire and cable maker (2018). The company is led by President and CEO Paul From and is headquartered near Perth, Ontario.
Altair Industries targets North America-based manufacturers with at least $10 million of EBITDA in aerospace and defense, government services, specialty manufacturing, and industrial services. The firm was founded with backing from Taproot Capital and is raising its inaugural fund, Altair Industries Fund I LP, which seeks up to $550 million in commitments. The Central Wire acquisition reflects Altair's thesis that domestic specialty manufacturers are benefiting from increased focus on supply chain resilience and U.S.-based sourcing of mission-critical components, particularly as defense budgets expand and manufacturers relocate production closer to home.
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