SAFE FLEET NEWS

Durite is the UK’s leading brand for electrical, lighting, and vehicle safety aftermarket products for commercial vehicles.

BELTON, MO – March 2, 2021 – Safe Fleet, a leading supplier of safety and productivity solutions for fleet vehicles, is pleased to welcome Durite, the UK’s leading electrical, lighting, and vehicle safety products brand serving the Commercial Vehicle aftermarket, to the Safe Fleet family of brands. Headquartered in Essex, England, Durite is Safe Fleet’s first acquisition outside of North America.

Durite is the leading “one-stop brand” for electrical, lighting, and vehicle safety aftermarket products for commercial vehicles in the UK and Ireland. As the aftermarket supplier of choice to the UK’s backbone transport infrastructure, Durite’s products are used by most fleet and commercial vehicle end users. 5000+ commercial vehicle products are available through Durite’s website and flagship catalogue – regarded as the industry ‘bible’ for electrical parts. Durite also has a comprehensive distribution network across the UK and Ireland with over 2,000 regional distributors.

“Durite is a great strategic and cultural fit within our fleet safety brand portfolio and establishes a new footprint for Safe Fleet outside of North America,” says Mike Schulte, President of Safe Fleet. “This is an exciting addition to our leading commercial vehicle brands and aftermarket product portfolio.”

Adding Durite to the Safe Fleet brand portfolio gives Safe Fleet a strong foothold in the European commercial vehicle market. Their fast-growing video-based safety and lighting categories, as well as their established electrical parts business broadens Safe Fleet’s Commercial Vehicle product suite. The addition of the 80+ year-old trusted brand with a commercial vehicle aftermarket focus aligns well with Safe Fleet’s brand portfolio and strategic focus.

“We are extremely excited to join the Safe Fleet family. We very much share the same set of values with a clear commitment to product quality and customer service,” says Pierre Nadeau, Managing Director at Durite. “Safe Fleet’s extensive range of safety equipment and strong track record of technology innovation is a fantastic fit to help us continue to drive the growth of Durite.”

The existing Durite leadership team will continue to manage the business moving forward. The strong Durite brand, business, and website will continue to be managed as a stand-alone entity.

“As the #1 fleet video supplier in North America, Safe Fleet sees the addition of Durite and its growing presence in the video solutions market in the UK, as an important step in our vision to become the leading global supplier of safety solutions for fleet vehicles,” adds John R. Knox, Safe Fleet Chairman & CEO. “With Durite onboard we are well-positioned for growth in the European Commercial Vehicle market.”

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About Safe Fleet
Headquartered in Belton, MO, Safe Fleet is the leading provider of safety solutions for fleet vehicles. Their best-of-breed smart solutions form an integrated safety platform for fleets of every type – School Bus, Transit, Fire, EMS, Law Enforcement, Work Truck, Truck & Trailer, Construction, Agriculture, Waste & Recycling, Industrial and Military. With a broad portfolio of market-leading brands, over 1,700 employees and 15 manufacturing locations, Safe Fleet continues to innovate and deliver the smart safety solutions that fleets need to survive and thrive in a changing world – and ensure that drivers, passengers, and everyone around them arrive home safely. Safe Fleet is driving safety forward for today’s and tomorrow’s fleets. For more information visit www.safefleet.net.  Safe Fleet is a portfolio company of Oak Hill Capital Partners.

About Durite
Durite is the UK’s leading brand in Vehicle Safety, Lighting, and electrical parts, servicing the UK Transport industry, end-user fleets, and manufacturers. For over 80 years, Durite has built an impeccable reputation supplying high quality parts to the commercial vehicle market. Today, the Durite brand is synonymous with quality products and outstanding customer service. Quality, reliability, affordable value, and high levels of service are at the core of everything they do. For more information about Durite and its products, visit www.durite.co.uk.

About Oak Hill Capital Partners
Oak Hill is a private equity firm managing funds with more than $14 billion of initial capital commitments and co-investments since inception from leading global endowments and foundations, public and corporate pension plans, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, financial institutions, consultants, and family offices. Over the past 30+ years, the professionals at Oak Hill and its predecessors have invested in 90 private equity transactions across broad segments of the U.S. and global economies. Oak Hill applies an industry-focused, theme-based approach to investing in the following sectors: Consumer, Retail & Distribution; Industrials; Media & Communications; and Services.  Oak Hill works actively in partnership with management to implement strategic and operational initiatives to create franchise value.  For more information, please visit www.oakhillcapital.com.