Air Distribution Technologies, the parent company of venting brands Selkirk, American Metals and Hart & Cooley, was purchased June 16, 2014, by global giant Johnson Controls. It was purchased from the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board for a reported $1.6 billion.

Air Distribution Technologies, based in Richardson, Texas, is one of the largest independent providers of air distribution and ventilation products in North America. The acquisition added 48 locations and 7,000 employees to Johnson Controls.

Other product brands of Air Distribution Technologies include Ruskin, Titus, Krueger, PanBarry and Tuttle & Bailey, all used in building construction.  Venting manufacturing facilities are located in Nobel, Ontario; Nampa, Idaho; Turner Falls, Massachusetts; Olive Branch, Mississippi, and Mexicali, Mexico.

Johnson Controls was created by Warren Johnson in 1885 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it’s still headquartered. He was the inventor of the electric room thermostat. In 2013 the company had global sales of $42.7 billion with 1,300 locations and 170,000 employees worldwide.

– Bill Sendelback