BELOIT, Wis. - Regal Beloit Corp. announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Unico Inc., of Franksville, Wis., a manufacturer of a full range of ac and dc drives, motor controllers, and other accessories used in many industrial and commercial applications. Unico’s technology is utilized in the fields of commercial HVAC, oil and gas recovery, test stand automation, and other applications. Unico’s sales for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2010 were $61.7 million. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close by year end. It is anticipated that the transaction will be accretive to earnings per share by approximately 7 cents in 2011.

Henry Knueppel, Regal Beloit chairman and CEO, said, “Unico is one of the most exciting acquisitions in RBC’s history. It is about bringing together a full electro-mechanical solution for customers. Investors should view this acquisition as the start of an adjacent platform. Unico has experienced great organic growth and built a platform for dynamic future growth. They have an incredibly talented leadership team that will create the nucleus of this new platform for Regal Beloit. We believe the marriage of our combined products will drive development and adoption of new energy efficient and intelligent solutions. We simply could not be more excited about this marriage.”

Tom Beck, president and CEO of Unico, said, “We view Regal Beloit as a great home for the company we have built. Our companies have been on a similar course with complementary products and technologies. This marriage represents opportunities for faster growth and broader solutions. We too are excited about what the future holds.”

For more information, visit www.regalbeloit.com.

Publication date: 12/20/2010