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November 2, 2009

Shaw buys artificial turf company

From staff reports

Dalton-based Shaw Industries has purchased Sportexe Construction Services, an artificial turf company headquartered in Irving, Texas.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Sportexe, which was incorporated in 1989, has a manufacturing, training and certification facility in Calhoun. The company manufactures artificial fields for baseball, football, golf, soccer and several other sports. Shaw Industries officials were not able to say how many employees Sportexe has or if Shaw plans to keep those workers.

“We are very pleased to have Sportexe joining Shaw Industries,” Shaw Industries CEO Vance Bell said in a press release. “The turf market offers exciting opportunities for us. We intend to be a fully integrated producer from manufacturing through installation. With the combined strengths of these two companies, we look forward to accelerated growth in the synthetic turf market.”

Sportexe has made fields for several NFL teams including the Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, New Orleans Saints, New York Jets and San Francisco 49ers, and college teams including Louisiana State University, the University of Arkansas and the University of Pittsburgh. Sportexe is also the exclusive or official turf system supplier for the Arena Football League, Major Indoor Soccer League and National Lacrosse League.

“Joining Shaw will give Sportexe the financial support and resources needed to boost the company to the next playing level,” said Stephen P. Noe, Sportexe president and CEO. “The combined strength of the two companies will allow Sportexe to continue delivering great service to its clients both before the sale, during the installation and throughout the ownership experience. It will also ensure we give athletes the best platform on which to play their game.”

The purchase brings together Shaw’s current TerraSport sports turf and TerraSoft recreational surfaces’ brands, sold under the Spectra Sports Surfaces division, with Sportexe’s current product offering.

Shaw Industries, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, has about 26,000 employees and more than $5 billion in annual sales.

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