Babson Capital Management, a global investment management firm with more than $154 billion in assets under management and operations on four continents, has provided subordinated debt and equity to support H-D Advanced Manufacturing’s investment in Overton Chicago Gear Corp. With roots dating to 1888, Addison, Illinois-based Overton designs and manufactures large, custom gearing products for mining and other  industries. Overton manufactures a wide range of gears and gearboxes, many of which are based on proprietary designs and all featuring high-precision parts durable and reliable enough to withstand harsh operating environments. Overton’s bevel gearing is one of the products used and the company produces spiral bevel gears, skewed bevel gears and straight bevel gears, both through hardened and case hardened and hard cut. The company reports it has “bevel gear capacity that is virtually unrivaled by any company worldwide. We also supply large spur gears, large helical gears and large gearboxes to the mining industry.”

The acquisition of Overton is a great first step toward achieving H-D Advanced Manufacturing’s strategy of becoming a strategic supplier of heavy-duty, precision-engineered components to the world’s leading industrial companies.

.Babson Capital’s Mezzanine & Private Equity Group was the lead provider of subordinated debt on the transaction. H-D Advanced Manufacturing is a holding company formed to acquire heavy-duty, precision-engineered components manufacturing businesses and Overton is its first such investment. The holding company was formed by three leading private equity groups, The Riverside Company, Hicks Equity Partners and Weinberg Capital Partners.