In an emailed press release, Bitec, Inc. (Morrilton, Arkansas, USA) — a leading manufacturer and distributor of atactic polypropylene (APP) and styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS) modified bitumen membranes in North America — announced its merger with the Viking Products Group, formerly based in Northeast Ohio. This partnership will give roofing contractor and distributor customers access to an extensive suite of roofing-related materials while expanding Bitec’s reach throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Viking Products Group was founded in 1996 as Commercial Innovations, Inc. to create a customer-responsive product and service offering for contractors and distributors. The company was rebranded under the Viking name in 2018. The company will reorganize and consolidate its warehouse, service, and support operations in Arkansas under Bitec’s leadership team, thereby enabling both organizations to better serve their customers.
Bitec Vice President Joel Shealey will assume the role of Bitec president in January 2024.
“The whole will be even stronger than the sum of its parts,” says Shealey. “We are two sales organizations serving the same markets. Aside from the obvious advantage of becoming more efficient at serving our customers, this merger will expand Bitec’s sales reach and give our customers access to some leading-edge products.”
According to Viking President Bret Wygal, Bitec will be retaining the Viking brand and acquiring all Viking product and intellectual property. He expects the merger will create sales momentum.
“We’ve been talking to our sales reps and they are really excited about this next step in our growth,” says Wygal. “Our customers will benefit from a deeper offering of modified bitumen options and the great support a more mature organization can provide.”
Back-end integrations are already underway and the merger will be completed early in the first quarter of 2024. For more information, visit https://bi-tec.com.