A Perfect Pairing With Tech Air – An Acquisition With No Regrets Mark Straka had been a hard-driving guy throughout his career in the gases industry. He spent many years moving around the country, working as an acquisition integrator, building sales and buying territories for some of the biggest guys in the business. With that expertise, he formed his own company in 2000, Special Air Technologies. He spent 14 years taking it from scratch to an enterprise with sales of $4.5 million in the wholesale specialty gas side of the industry. Around 2012, Straka began to look for acquisition partners. Wanting more time for personal pursuits beyond work, he’d decided that it was time to sell. His knew his company was attractive; and he’d been talking to a few of the industry’s big guys. But in 2013, Myles Dempsey, Tech Air’s CEO, who was just beginning his multi-region growth strategy, was suggested as an alternative partner. It didn’t take long to realize the chemistry felt right. Some of Mark’s hesitancy about working with big firms came from a previous acquisition experience with a smaller company as a minority partner that he owned years before, which didn’t go well. “It was a horror story,” Straka says, explaining that the memories stuck with him. Something about Myles Dempsey’s approach, though – the way he worked, the assurances he made, the follow-through offered, the comfortable work ethic – reminded him of ADVERTISEMENT
his early career days – “when employees were important and the customer was the focus.” Tech Air’s philosophy and demeanor struck the right chord and convinced Straka he’d found a perfect pairing. “What impressed me the most was that on the day of closing, Tech Air brought in just four people,” Straka recalls. Dempsey, an acquisition integrator and two people from Tech Air’s Human Resources team came in and met with every one of Special Air’s 14 employees for an hour and a half to two hours each, over a two-day period. Straka recalls, “They discussed everything about Tech Air and its policies, which really put my employees and me at ease,” Straka relates. He liked the idea of staying on as a consultant for a year and structured a non-compete agreement where he could start a small, new company leasing tube-trailers for helium and hydrogen storage and transport. “Being in the corporate world and then having my own business, I really couldn’t go to work for anybody else, but the fact I was able to do consulting work for them for a year was very enticing to me,” Straka says. “Tech Air delivered on every promise they made, from a financial perspective. The entire acquisition process remained true to our objectives and plans. I’m thrilled with how everything worked out,” Straka says. “It’s everything I could have hoped for and more.”
“Tech Air delivered on every promise they made, from a financial perspective. The entire acquisition process remained true to our objectives and plans.” - Mark Straka Aircraft Welder
“ Some things just go together perfectly!” - Myles Dempsey CEO, Tech Air Spring 2017 • 21