Fathom Builds Out its Aerospace and Defense Platform

Fathom Digital Manufacturing, a contract maker of precision parts and a portfolio company of CORE Industrial Partners, has acquired TCS Industries, TCS Electronics and Precision Grinding & Manufacturing (PGM), three Rochester, New York-area manufacturers that supply aerospace and defense customers.

The three add-ons come approximately two and a half years after CORE Industrial Partners took Fathom private in May 2024, following its December 2021 public listing. CORE first invested in the platform in 2018 and remained its largest shareholder during its public ownership. The acquisitions bring Fathom’s footprint to 10 facilities and approximately 700 employees.

Fathom makes custom parts for manufacturers that need components faster, or in smaller quantities, than a mass-production plant can supply. It offers more than 25 manufacturing processes, including 3D printing in plastic and metal, computer-controlled (CNC) machining, sheet metal cutting and forming, plastic injection molding, tooling, assembly and finishing.



Engineers use those services to take a product from first prototype through qualified production, when a part has passed customer testing and can be built repeatedly. End markets include aerospace and defense, medical devices, semiconductors, robotics and automation, automotive and industrial equipment.

Fathom operates seven plants in Wisconsin, Texas, Minnesota, Colorado, Illinois and New York (2), including Newark, about 35 miles east of Rochester. The company, led by CEO Rush LaSelle, is headquartered 25 miles west of Milwaukee in Hartland, Wisconsin.

[caption id="attachment_241875" align="alignright" width="120"] Rush LaSelle[/caption]

"The challenge for aerospace and defense manufacturers isn't just developing new technologies. It's having the manufacturing expertise and capacity to produce them reliably and at scale," said Mr. LaSelle. "TCS and PGM bring exceptional technical talent, proven capabilities and deep customer relationships that make our platform stronger. Together, we can support more complex programs, provide customers with a broader range of solutions and help them navigate the increasing demands of aerospace and defense manufacturing."

TCS Industries, established in 1992, is a contract machine shop and sheet metal fabricator. It cuts metal parts on more than 120 CNC milling and turning machines, fabricates and welds sheet metal, and builds electro-mechanical assemblies. It also performs aluminum dip brazing, which joins every seam of an aluminum assembly in one dip in molten salt.

Sister company TCS Electronics, which has offered contract electronics manufacturing since 2012, builds printed circuit board assemblies, cable and wire harnesses and complete "box builds," in which boards, wiring and hardware are assembled into a finished enclosure. The two TCS businesses operate two facilities totaling more than 200,000 square feet and have nearly 35 years of aerospace and defense work behind them.

"For nearly 35 years, we've built TCS around the trust of our customers and the expertise of our employees," said Manoj Shekar, the founder and president of TCS. "Joining Fathom gives us the resources and broader capabilities to build on that success while maintaining the customer focus and operating discipline that have defined our business. We're excited about the opportunities ahead for our employees and customers."
PGM is a maker of precision components. Its capabilities include machining, milling, turning and grinding metal parts, abrasive finishing, assembly and finishing. PGM supports customers from low-volume runs through full-rate production of components that require rigorous quality documentation. The family-owned company is led by CEO Mike Hockenberger.

"Our family has spent nearly six decades building a business known for precision, reliability and customer service," said Todd Hockenberger, a corporate VP of PGM. "Fathom shares those values and brings the resources and broader capabilities to help us take the next step. We look forward to investing in our people, expanding our capabilities and supporting the next generation of aerospace and defense programs."

Fathom traces its roots to Midwest Composite Technologies (MCT), founded in Hartland in 1984. CORE acquired MCT in September 2018 and used it as the base of a prototyping and low-volume production platform. MCT then added Fathom, a California-based 3D printing business (2019); ICOMold, an Ohio-based plastic injection molder (2019); and GPI Prototype & Manufacturing Services, an Illinois-based metal 3D printing company (2020). The combined companies took the Fathom name, and in April 2021 CORE merged the business with sheet metal fabricator Incodema Holdings. By the end of 2023, Fathom had integrated 13 acquired companies.

In December 2021, Fathom went public on the New York Stock Exchange through a merger with Altimar Acquisition Corp. II, a special purpose acquisition company. The transaction valued the consideration paid to Fathom's existing owners at about $1.2 billion, and CORE retained roughly 63% of the voting power. Over the next two years, Fathom consolidated its California operations into Hartland, closed a Texas plant, moved to close a Florida plant and reduced its workforce. It generated 2023 revenue of $131.2 million and ended that year with 576 employees.



In February 2024, CORE agreed to take Fathom private for $4.75 in cash per Class A share. CORE's funds committed up to $73.9 million, including $51.2 million to pay down Fathom's credit facility. The take private closed in May 2024.

Within aerospace and defense, demand is outrunning capacity. PwC says combined revenue of the 100 biggest aerospace and defense companies crossed $1 trillion for the first time in 2025, industry operating profit rose 46%, and the defense backlog has grown more than 50% over three years. The commercial aircraft backlog stands at nearly 15,000 units.

Deloitte expects shortages of materials and skilled labor, along with geopolitical disruption, to keep aerospace and defense supply chains under pressure through at least 2027. It says some original equipment manufacturers are targeting capacity expansions of 40% to 50% over the next five years.

Much of that capacity sits in small, often family-owned machine shops and electronics assemblers, a fragmented supplier base that private equity firms are consolidating.

[caption id="attachment_241872" align="alignright" width="120"] Matthew Puglisi[/caption]

"The aerospace and defense industry is entering a period of significant investment in domestic manufacturing capacity, and suppliers that can combine technical expertise, quality and reliable execution will play an increasingly important role," said Matthew Puglisi, a partner at CORE. "We believe TCS and PGM are outstanding businesses with strong customer relationships and capabilities that complement Fathom's existing platform. These acquisitions position Fathom to pursue larger opportunities across aerospace and defense while continuing to invest in the people, technology and manufacturing capabilities needed to support long-term growth."

CORE Industrial Partners invests up to $150 million of equity in North American lower middle-market companies with revenue of up to $200 million and EBITDA of up to $20 million. It takes majority control positions. Sectors of interest include manufacturing, industrial technology and industrial services. CORE’s latest funds closed in February 2024 with $887 million of committed capital: $685 million for CORE Industrial Partners Fund III and $202 million for CORE Industrial Services Fund I. CORE was founded in 2017 by Managing Partner John May with founding partners Frank Papa, TJ Chung and Mr. Puglisi, and is headquartered in Chicago with offices in Austin, Texas, and Cleveland.

The Fathom add-ons follow CORE's January 2026 acquisition of Airway Aerospace, a Florida-based aircraft component repair station, through its AxioAero Group aviation aftermarket platform.