In yet another example of consolidation below the industry’s top tier, NASDAQ-listed SigmaTron International (Elk Grove Village, IL) has signed a non-binding letter of intent to purchase Able Electronics (Hayward, CA), a privately-held EMS company, for an undisclosed sum.

With over 200 employees, Able offers manufacturing capacity of 185,000 ft2 split between Hayward, CA, and Tijuana, Mexico. The provider serves OEMs in telecom, internetworking, medical instruments, computer peripherals, industrial controls, genetic research applications, and semiconductor testing. Following a vertical integration strategy, Able has the cable assembly, sheet metal fabrication, powder coating and silkscreening to make its own custom enclosures. Able’s EMS menu ranges from design services and prototyping to systems integration and test, fulfillment, and sustaining services.

“This acquisition will give Sigma- Tron significant industry expertise in a number of new markets, which when combined with our existing customer base, will diversify and expand the number of industries we will serve,” stated Gary Fairhead, SigmaTron’s president and CEO. He said the deal will also expand the range of services offered by SigmaTron.

In Form 10-K for the company’s fiscal year ended April 2004, Sigma- Tron reported that its customers (in order of contribution) were in the appliance, gaming, industrial electronics, fitness, telecom, consumer electronics and automotive industries.

Another proposed transaction, announced the same day, will affect SigmaTron’s gaming business. The company has entered into a non-binding letter of intent to sell its Las Vegas, NV, operation, which serves customers primarily in the gaming industry. The buyer is Grand Products (Des Plaines, IL), a contract assembler of coin-op games and gaming machines. SigmaTron said the sale will allow it allocate more resources for expanding capabilities in higher growth locations. The company will use the proceeds and additional free cash flow to explore other niche acquisitions or invest in other operations.

Other manufacturing facilities sit in Elk Grove Village, IL; Acuna, Mexico; Fremont, CA; and Suzhou- Wujiang, China.