German company buys Peoria-based sprinkler company

L.R. Nelson Corp., the Peoria-based sprinkler and lawn products company, has been sold to the Bosch Group, former Nelson CEO David Ransburg confirmed Thursday.

Nelson's Consumer Products and Sunterra divisions were sold to Bosch's Power Tools division, Ransburg said.

It is expected Bosch, the multi-faceted, Stuttgart, Germany-based company, will keep the Nelson business intact, including the company's 250 employees, as well as the Peoria facility, he added.

Terms of the acquisition, which was finalized on Thursday, were not disclosed.

And what will Ransburg, who has owned L.R. Nelson since 1972, do now?

"I'll be called a retiree," said the businessman and former Peoria mayor largely credited with turning the Peoria Civic Center from a money loser to a profitable institution when he was chairman of the Civic Center Authority in the late 1980s and early '90s.

"I'm going to be 70 this year, and most people are ready for retirement by that age. So, basically, I felt it was time to move on," Ransburg said.

He acknowledged the financial problems faced by the company - problems that led to most of the company's manufacturing jobs moving to China a few years ago - were a factor in the decision to sell now. He did not, however, go into detail about those problems or the company's debts.

"We have gone through some very tough years here, that's no secret. There finally came a time, I guess, to turn the fight over to somebody who can take it on. Bosch is big enough to take on the fight. It's time for me to move on," Ransburg said.

Bosch's strength, he said, was one of the things that attracted him to that company as a potential buyer.

"Another key for me was that they will maintain the business here and keep it going. What they ultimately do is now their business, but my understanding it that nobody will lose their job as a result of this transaction," he said.

In a news release from Stuttgart that was issued early today in Germany, Bosch said the Nelson business, which in 2007 had sales of about $80 million, will boost sales in the Bosch garden business to about $500 million annually.

"Bosch continues to consolidate its position as a leader in the garden business," the company said in the release.

The acquired parts of Nelson will be integrated into Bosch's U.S.-based garden and watering division, said Manfred Seitz, president of the Bosch Power Tools division in North and South America.

"The Nelson product range is an excellent complement to our existing garden business," Seitz said in the news release.

Nelson's consumer products and Sunterra divisions include sprinklers, nozzles, filters, pumps and fountains.

In 2007, Bosch had more than $400 million in sales of garden and watering products and electric garden tools.

Total sales for the Bosch Group, which also includes automotive and industrial technology products, consumer goods and building technology, were $63.2 billion in 2007, the news release said.

Paul Gordon can be reached at (309) 686-3288 or pgordon@pjstar.com .

Bosch Group

The Bosch Group, formally known in its native Germany as Robert Bosch GmbH, has completed its acquisition of L.R. Nelson Corp. of Peoria.

About Bosch: Bosch is a supplier of technology and services in the areas of automotive and industrial technology, consumer goods and building technology, with offices around the world. The company had $63.2 billion in global sales in 2007.

Acquisition: Bosch's Power Tools division acquired Nelson's consumer products and Sunterra divisions that include Nelson-branded water and gardening tools and lawn decor products. It also included the Nelson headquarters at 1 Sprinkler Lane in Peoria.

Terms: Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

Future plans: Bosch plans to absorb the 250 Nelson employees and continue operations at the Peoria facility.