HVAC Shake-Up: Atmus Buys Koch Filter as ADTi Refocuses with New CEO

LOS ANGELES, CA – January 07, 2026 – The industrial and HVAC sectors witnessed a significant strategic realignment today as Truelink Capital announced the completion of two major transactions. The private equity firm has sold Koch Filter Corporation to Atmus Filtration Technologies for $450 million in cash, while simultaneously appointing veteran industrial executive Azam Owaisi as the new CEO of its portfolio company, Air Distribution Technologies (ADTi).

The dual moves signal a deliberate reshaping of ADTi, which will now focus intensely on its core HVAC product lines, and a major market expansion for Atmus, which acquires a leading nationwide platform in the booming air filtration space. The deal underscores powerful trends of consolidation and specialization sweeping through an industry transformed by a heightened focus on indoor air quality and efficiency.

Atmus Expands into Industrial Air Filtration

For Atmus Filtration Technologies, the acquisition of Koch Filter represents a pivotal expansion beyond its traditional stronghold in filtration for commercial trucks, buses, and heavy-duty equipment. The $450 million all-cash deal immediately establishes a formidable presence for Atmus in the lucrative industrial and commercial air filtration market.

Koch Filter, founded in 1966, brings a comprehensive portfolio of highly consumable products, including pleated filters, high-efficiency filters, and critical HEPA filters. With reported revenues of $156 million for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2025, and manufacturing operations in Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Texas, and California, Koch provides Atmus with a scaled, nationwide platform.

This acquisition is the cornerstone of Atmus's newly formed "Industrial Solutions" segment. The strategic rationale is clear: to diversify revenue streams and capture growth in high-demand sectors such as commercial HVAC, data centers, and power generation. Atmus expects the transaction to be accretive to its adjusted earnings per share and EBITDA margin in 2026, projecting a high-single-digit return on invested capital by 2028. To ensure a smooth integration and continuity, Koch Filter's current president, Mark Mattingly, will continue to lead the business, reporting to Atmus's Senior Vice President of Strategy, Rakesh Gangwani, who will now also serve as President of the new Industrial Solutions segment.

A Sharpened Focus for Air Distribution Technologies

While Atmus expands, Air Distribution Technologies is strategically contracting its scope to accelerate growth. Following the divestiture of Koch Filter, ADTi, under the ownership of Truelink Capital, will concentrate its resources on its three core business units: Air Control Solutions, Air Movement Solutions, and Air Distribution Solutions.

This move marks the next phase in the evolution of ADTi since Truelink acquired it from Johnson Controls in a corporate carve-out in August 2024. The sale of the filtration business allows ADTi to double down on its well-recognized brands, which include industry mainstays like Ruskin for dampers and louvers, Titus and Tuttle & Bailey for grilles and diffusers, and PennBarry for commercial fans. These product lines form the backbone of the HVAC ecosystem in commercial and residential buildings.

"With the successful closing of the Koch Filter divestiture, we're excited to focus on ADTi's core business and drive significant organic and inorganic growth," said Todd Golditch, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Truelink. This statement highlights a clear strategy of reinvesting capital and management attention into improving operational efficiencies and pursuing targeted mergers and acquisitions to strengthen its position in the engineered air distribution market. Truelink also extended its appreciation to Doug Schuster for his leadership during the complex carve-out and transition period. Schuster will remain involved through the first half of 2026 to support continuity.

New Leadership to Steer ADTi's Next Chapter

Underscoring the new strategic direction is the immediate appointment of Azam Owaisi as Chief Executive Officer of Air Distribution Technologies. Owaisi is a seasoned leader with a deep background in driving growth and operational excellence across major industrial corporations.

His impressive career includes serving as CEO, North America at GEA Group, and holding senior executive roles at Dover Corporation, Pall Corporation, IDEX Corporation, and Illinois Tool Works (ITW). His extensive experience in commercial strategy and business optimization is seen as a perfect fit for ADTi's next phase.

"ADTi's portfolio and people are exceptional," said Azam Owaisi. "I am honored to join as CEO at this pivotal moment and look forward to partnering with the team to accelerate operational excellence, innovation, and customer value across our brands." His appointment signals Truelink's commitment to installing top-tier leadership to execute its value creation plan, which combines operational improvements with strategic growth initiatives.

A Market in Motion: Consolidation and Specialization Trends

These transactions do not occur in a vacuum. They reflect broader dynamics within the global air filtration and HVAC markets, which are experiencing robust growth. Valued at over $16 billion in 2024, the air filters market is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 8% through 2032.

This growth is fueled by a confluence of powerful drivers. Heightened public and corporate awareness of indoor air quality (IAQ), accelerated by the recent global pandemic, has made high-performance filtration a necessity rather than a luxury. Furthermore, increasingly stringent government regulations, such as the EU's Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, and a push toward green building standards are mandating more sophisticated and energy-efficient HVAC and filtration systems.

In this environment, the moves by Atmus and ADTi are textbook examples of prevailing corporate strategies. Atmus's acquisition of Koch Filter is a classic consolidation play, allowing a larger company to enter a new, synergistic market and achieve scale quickly. Conversely, ADTi's divestiture and renewed focus exemplify a specialization strategy, enabling the company to deepen its expertise and competitive advantage in a more narrowly defined segment of the HVAC industry. This dual-pronged strategic activity highlights a maturing market where companies must choose between diversifying broadly or dominating a specific niche to succeed.