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O w n e r s h i p: O n ta r i o Teachers Pension f course, there are more ways to measure success than gross sales. Alliance Laundry System's EBITDA earnings from 2005 to 2012 consistently show a year-over-year increase along with growth of 5.6 percent during that same time. It's that kind of financial performance that drew the attention of Alliance's top investor, the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan, which in 2005 acquired a majority interest in the laundry equipment manufacturer. OTPP, through Alliance Laundry Holdings, owns 83 percent of the stock, while the Alliance management team indirectly owns the remaining stock. "We purchased Alliance Laundry, because it COUR TESY OF ALLIANCE LAUNDRY SYSTEMS revenues dip to $393 million in 2009 from a high of $460 million in 2008. The company has always posted profits. "We are looking at our 10th straight year of record profits," says Bruce Rounds, Alliance Laundry Systems chief financial officer. In part, the recessionary trends that hurt sales also helped Alliance by reducing the cost of its raw materials, Rounds explains. Since 70 percent of the cost of its product comes from materials such as steel, declining commodity prices allowed the company to better weather the recession. Additionally, many customers used the recession as an opportunity to upgrade their equipment to more efficient models that helped them control costs. A welder works on a cylinder for a tumble dryer at Alliance Laundry Systems. The company expects to add 250 employees this year. For Alliance, the OTPP ownership has proven positive. "They are a patient investor, and a long-term investor," Rounds says. "We can take a longer view and talk about things a couple of years out rather than worry about the next quarter." The financial health of Alliance Laundry Systems is just one of many indicators of the company's success the past several years. Another tangible sign is the expansion project announced in September 2012. The company will spend an estimated $23 million to add 20,000 square feet of manufacturing space to its assembly facilities. The expansion is being fueled by demand for Alliance's smallchassis washers and dryers, and the expanded facilities will enable Alliance to increase its capacity by 40 percent. That means additional staffing as well. Alliance plans to add 250 employees in the expansion, much of that growth starting in May. Alliance's workforce will top 1,500 employees when the project is complete, which is expected later this summer. "We have a very unique product and we continue to see demand increase," Schoeb says. "No one else really has the complete package we do." – Bruce Rounds, Alliance Laundry Systems chief financial officer That complete package refers to more than just the machines. A critical component of Alliance's complete package is the presented us with an ideal opportunity to invest company's Customer One service program, which was started by in a global leader with established brands with a Schoeb's predecessor. The program's mission is a simple one: "To strong and experienced management team at the delight the customer with each and every interaction." helm," says Deborah Allan, a spokeswoman for As Schoeb likes to add: "That's easy to say, hard to do." the OTPP. "Alliance was, and continues to be, well But that mission drives the staff in everything they do, whether positioned to continue its global growth, given its it's the development of online training and certification programs leading product offering and focus on research for supplier technicians, or having its own staff in the field to and development." "We are looking at our 10th straight year of record profits." 26 | Insight • M a y 2 013 w w w. i n s i g h t o n b u s i n e s s . c o m