The O.H.I.O. Fund invests $5.6 million in Ohio stamping platform
Two family-founded stamping companies, one in St. Marys and one in Brooklyn Heights, join a Cleveland-based platform that already ran six plants and $300 million in revenue. The capital comes through private funds advised by The O.H.I.O. Fund rather than its own balance sheet.
OCTAD Capital Partners has received a $5.6 million investment through private funds advised by The O.H.I.O. Fund. The Cleveland-based firm will use the capital to expand its holdings across Ohio's metal stamping and processing industry.
The investment, announced Aug. 18, was disclosed the same day OCTAD Precision Manufacturing Group, an affiliate of OCTAD Capital Partners, announced it had purchased two Ohio stamping companies. Both acquisitions were supported by The O.H.I.O. Fund investment, according to the companies.
By the numbers
- $5.6 million investment through private funds advised by The O.H.I.O. Fund
- Two Ohio acquisitions announced the same day
- Six metal stamping companies in the platform before the deals
- 400-plus employees across the platform
- $300 million in combined revenue
- 225,000-square-foot Omni Manufacturing plant in St. Marys, running roughly 50 presses from 50 to 1,500 tons
- 140,000-square-foot Die-Matic facility in Brooklyn Heights, with 18 presses and five machining centers
The strategy: buy legacy, then modernize
OCTAD describes itself as an operator-led manufacturing investment platform that acquires and scales legacy industrial businesses. Its focus is metal stamping, forming, and related industrial companies, many of them decades old and owned by founders or families approaching a transition.
The platform's customers span aerospace, medical equipment, trucking, appliances, and automotive supply chains, sectors with significant Ohio footprints.
"Ohio has no shortage of great manufacturing companies," said Ray Leach, co-founder and president of The O.H.I.O. Fund. "What many firms need is a path to the next generation of ownership and growth. OCTAD brings operational expertise to help manufacturing businesses evolve, and we're proud to partner by providing long-term capital through the private funds we advise. Together, we can help strong Ohio manufacturers write their next chapter of growth and success."
Andy Smith, managing partner and chairman of OCTAD, framed the strategy around modernizing companies rather than dismantling them.
"We're excited for this partnership with The O.H.I.O. Fund to create lasting value by transforming legacy manufacturers into stronger, more durable companies that create opportunities for employees and the communities they're located in all across Ohio," Smith said. "Our team has spent our careers inside manufacturing businesses, so we understand clearly that the next era of American industry will be led by people bold enough to believe that legacy businesses can be reimagined, manufacturing jobs still matter and Ohio can be a model for industrial excellence."
Omni Manufacturing: 50 presses in St. Marys
The first of the two acquisitions is Omni Manufacturing Inc., a St. Marys precision stamping company founded in 1968 by Wayne Freewalt. Omni serves automotive manufacturers and original equipment manufacturers from a 225,000-square-foot plant running roughly 50 stamping presses ranging from 50 to 1,500 tons.
The facility also houses manual and robotic welding lines and an in-house tool shop that designs, builds, and maintains tooling for automotive customers. The company began as a tool shop before moving into production stamping.
Die-Matic: an ESOP with 40 customer relationships
The second is Die-Matic Corporation, a Brooklyn Heights company founded in 1958 with 70 employees. Die-Matic operates a 140,000-square-foot facility with 18 stamping presses and five machining centers, along with in-house tooling, welding, washing, riveting, and assembly.
Its press capacities range from 45 to 800 tons, and annual production volumes run from 5,000 to 10 million units, a range that lets it serve both low- and high-volume customers. The company holds close to 40 long-tenured customer relationships and has a deep history in automotive work. Its employees held ownership through an employee stock ownership plan.
Smith cited that ownership structure in announcing the purchase.
"Ohio has an impressive manufacturing history, and it's a powerful testament to Die-Matic and its dedicated ESOP-owner employees that the company has been such an integral part of that honorable heritage," Smith stated.
OCTAD noted it will apply its own systems and processes to both companies, with changes spanning finance, customer relations, marketing, and logistics.
How the capital actually flows
The structure of the funding reflects how The O.H.I.O. Fund deploys capital. The firm, which operates as TOF Manager LLC, advises private investment vehicles that make the investments directly, rather than investing off its own balance sheet.
It manages a traditional closed-end fund aimed at institutional investors and an evergreen fund that reinvests realized proceeds instead of winding down on a set timeline. Both invest across sectors including real estate, infrastructure, growth equity, and technology. The firm also manages special purpose vehicles for select deals. Announced figures represent capital that has been funded and deployed rather than commitments.
The O.H.I.O. Fund was co-founded by Leach, the former founding chief executive of JumpStart Inc., and Mark Kvamme, alongside founding partners Jill Meyer and Mike Venerable.
