Saco Rope Maker Changes Hands Again In Slingmax Sale To Sterling

Saco-based rope manufacturer Yale Cordage has a new owner as part of the sale of industrial lifting and rigging company Slingmax Group Inc., The Deal reported on October 6.

Chattanooga, Tenn.-based River Associates Investments LP said it sold Slingmax to Sterling Group LP of Houston. Neither firm disclosed financial terms.

River began assembling the platform with its August 2020 purchase of Yale Cordage, then acquired Slingmax and I&I Sling Inc. in April 2023 before merging all three businesses under the Slingmax name. The combined company, based in Aston, Pa., makes synthetic slings, synthetic and wire rope, rigging hardware and hoists for customers in aerospace, infrastructure, manufacturing, defense, energy and shipbuilding.

The Deal reported in October 2025 that River had hired Piper Sandler Cos. to run an auction for Slingmax, which generates roughly $15 million in Ebitda, and that the business could fetch a low-double-digit multiple of that figure.

River said the sale was its fourth portfolio exit of 2026 and that its ownership funded investment in engineering and manufacturing capacity and an expansion into the Upper Midwest. Sterling, which targets industrial companies with enterprise values of $100 million to $1 billion, said it intends to work with Slingmax management to grow the business.

Piper Sandler and Holland & Knight LLP advised River; Sterling used Latham & Watkins LLP.

This story was first reported by The Deal Pipeline.