Adient Buys Tesla Interiors Supplier

Adient plc has agreed to buy Oak Park, Mich.-based seating and interiors supplier Futuris Global Holdings LLC from Clearlake Capital Group for $360 million. The company lists Tesla Inc. as its largest customer.

The deal, which is expected to be completed by the end of September, includes the assumption of $18 million in net debt. Adient estimates the acquisition will add $500 million in revenue per year, while improving its manufacturing utilization in North America and expanding its business in southeast Asia.

Futuris provides full seating systems, seat frames, seat trim, headrests, armrests and seat bolsters. Besides Tesla, the company’s major customers include Ford and General Motors in the U.S. and Brilliance, Chery and Geely in China.

Clearlake, an 11-year-old private investment group, purchased Futuris in 2014. During Clearlake’s ownership, Futuris transformed from being a mainly Australian-based company into a global operation with 15 facilities in North America and Asia. Recent expansions included purchases of CNI Enterprises and Kongsberg Automotive’s North American headrest and armrest business.