Southfield, Mich.-based SyBridge Technologies LP made its sixth deal in 12 months, acquiring Advantage Engineering Inc. in Windsor, Ontario, to offer online quoting for digital rapid prototyping and additive manufacturing as well as bridge tooling.

Founded in 1994, Advantage Engineering also provides low-volume production services for customers in the automotive, medical, aerospace and consumer goods markets.

The online quoting process will be a part of SyBridge's digital platform, called SyBridge IoT Cloud, for plastic and metal 3D printing, aluminum tooling production and low-volume injection molding.

The deal brings SyBridge Technologies' new capabilities related to 3D printing of plastics, aluminum and steel, stereolithography printing, urethane casting and rapid aluminum tooling for both low-volume production resins and bridge tooling, SyBridge Technologies CEO Tony Nardone said in an email.

The online quoting process will be a part of SyBridge’s digital platform, called SyBridge IoT Cloud, for plastic and metal 3D printing, aluminum tooling production and low-volume injection molding. SyBridge will use the rapid tooling to bridge the gap between prototype and production as well as low-volume production of 2,500 to 5,000 pieces, Nardone also said.

SyBridge Technologies was established in 2019 by its private equity owner, New York-based Crestview Partners, as part of a $200 million commitment to acquire tool and mold companies spanning end markets, geographies and technological capabilities.

The Advantage deal brings capabilities that will position SyBridge as the supplier of choice for the rapidly growing electric vehicle market as well as the life sciences, consumer and other markets, according to Andy Aiton, president of the SyBridge technology and services business unit.

"Advantage has been a leader in rapid prototyping throughout North America for 27 years," Aiton said in a news release. "This acquisition will allow SyBridge to better engage with customers during the product development phase. By utilizing a wide range of in-house capabilities and digital technologies, we can now generate an online quote within minutes and prototype parts in days. With the addition of bridge tooling capabilities, we can now effectively 'bridge' the gap between low and high production volumes for our customers."

Advantage adds a critical piece of the puzzle to SyBridge's development into a comprehensive industrial technology solutions partner, according to SyBridge CEO Tony Nardone.

"As a single point of contact with e-commerce and IoT services, we can reduce lead times and improve quality to best meet our customers' product development, low-volume production, tooling and service and repair needs," Nardone said.

The Windsor company is not related to a similarly-named firm in Indiana.

SyBridge's acqusition streak in the last 12 months also includes Active Industrial Solutions Inc. of Windsor; Pyramid Mold & Tool, a Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., a manufacturer of multicavity injection molds; and Lakeshore Fixture & Gauge Ltd. in Canada and Action Tooling LLC. The Action purchase didn’t include the molding unit, Action Mold Machining Inc.

SyBridge also acquired Concours Technologies Inc. of Lakeshore, Ontario, which then bought Valiant Tool and Mold Inc. of Windsor in January 2020.

Concours is No. 3 in the most recent Plastics News ranking of North American toolmakers with $154 million in annual sales.

In addition, in late 2020, SyBridge acquired Fairview, Pa.-based X-Cell Tool and Mold Inc. to anchor its medical molds unit.

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