Columbus McKinnon Corporation (Nasdaq:CMCO), a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of material handling products, announced today that it has acquired privately-owned Unified Industries, Inc. (“Unified”). Unified designs, manufacturers and markets overhead light rail workstations primarily used in automotive and other industrial applications.

Timothy T. Tevens, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “Unified’s workstation cranes and light rail lifting systems are a natural extension of our hoist product portfolio. The combination elevates our ability to deepen relationships with our OEMs through a broader scope of bundled solutions. We expect to increase sales of Unified’s products by leveraging our extensive sales organization and value-added distribution channels globally. This represents a good utilization of our cash as we continue to pursue acquisitions to further our mission to be the global leader in providing products and application knowledge to help customers lift, position and secure materials easily.”

With its headquarters in Howell, MI, Unified had sales of $12.4 million in 2013. The acquisition is expected to be accretive to Columbus McKinnon’s earnings in fiscal year 2015.