Industry leading companies unite with over 7,000 employees operating in 45 states and 6 Canadian provinces KENT, Ohio, June 30
KENT, Ohio, June 30 /PRNewswire/ -- The Davey Tree Expert Company, North
America's original and largest residential tree care company, has merged with
The Care of Trees, Inc., one of the nation's top three premier
residential/commercial tree service organizations.
Davey Tree, founded in 1880 by John Davey, provides diversified services
and technical consulting to the utility industry, state and federal
governments, large commercial properties, and golf and sports facilities, in
addition to the residential market. In 2007, Davey had consolidated revenues
of $506 million. Employee-owned since 1979, Davey is the 16th largest
majority employee-owned company in the United States according to the National
Center for Employee Ownership.
The Care of Trees, based in Wheeling, Illinois, has operations and
facilities in Illinois, California, Connecticut, Maryland, New York,
Pennsylvania and Virginia. It provides tree care services for more than
60,000 residential and commercial clients. In 2007, The Care of Trees posted
revenues of approximately $51 million.
Hendricksen Tree Experts was established in the 1960s by John R.
Hendricksen, and later became The Care of Trees as a result of the merger of
Archibald Enoch Price, the Care of Trees, and Hendricksen Tree Experts in
1985. Hendricksen, prior to the merger, was the principal owner of this
employee-owned business. Going forward, The Care of Trees will operate as a
wholly owned Davey subsidiary.
"The Care of Trees and Davey Tree combined have nearly 170 years of
experience providing advanced tree care services. We will continue to focus
on service integrity as we build on the best qualities of both companies,"
said Karl J. Warnke, Davey president and CEO. "It's an exciting time as we
unite our individual strengths for the mutual benefit of our clients and our
employee owners."
Warnke added, "Our companies have many similarities. As employee-owned
companies, our people are the foundation of our success. We have storied
histories and similar cultures. We take pride in providing employees with the
atmosphere and training they need to deliver the highest levels of performance
and customer service."
"This merger gives us the chance to take the best practices of both
companies across North America," said Hendricksen, chairman of The Care of
Trees. "Our commitment to our employees, particularly exemplified with our
'Leading with Safety' program, is very compatible with Davey's safety
commitment to their employee owners."
This transaction is Davey's thirteenth acquisition in the past two years.
It follows Davey's March 2008 acquisition of the assets of Wolf Tree Experts,
Inc., a Knoxville, Tennessee-based utility tree trimming company with 700
employees, a 13-state service area, and annualized revenues of over $40
million.
For more information about Davey, visit www.davey.com and for more
information about The Care of Trees visit www.thecareoftrees.com/ .
SOURCE The Davey Tree Expert Company
