Keiser Industries sold to N.H. company

Leslie H. Dixon/Sun Journal

Robert Finlay, president of R.J. Finlay & Co., flew in his helicopter to Keiser Homes on Thursday to seal the purchase of the local company and meet with its staff.

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- Leslie H. Dixon/Sun Journal

OXFORD — Keiser Industries Inc., a modular building manufacturer, has been purchased by R.J. Finlay & Co. LLC, a national real estate firm.

The purchase will not affect the 100-plus jobs at the 20-year-old company on Route 121, R.J. Finlay Co. Communications Director David Lazar said.

Keiser Homes President David Cuttler praised the move as one that will allow more growth for the company in an economically depressed time.

"It gives us a much bigger depth of financial stability and allows us to enter into new markets," Cuttler said Thursday afternoon.

R.J. Finlay & Co., based in Milford, N.H., also bought Maine's remaining brick manufacturer, Morin Brick of Auburn, seven months ago. The 97-year-old company, which employed 55 local workers, was involved in a Chapter 11 court protection.

"That's 155 jobs that we are keeping in place," Lazar said.

R.J. Finlay has no plans to expand or move the 80,000-square-foot Keiser manufacturing facility on Route 121, Lazar said. "We're still working on business plans."

Cuttler said Keiser has remained strong in the residential housing market, which he called its "bread and butter" during the past 2½ years when the housing market saw a steep decline. Although the residential market will remain the company's focus, the infusion of financial resources offered by R.J. Finlay & Co. will allow Keiser to broaden its opportunities into the commercial and industrial market, he said.

R.J. Finlay owns a number of businesses in construction and real estate, and despite the current state of the housing market nationwide, Lazar said it is a good time for the purchase.

"We are a believer in the housing market," he said. "We believe it's gone as low as it's going to go. Keiser was in a stronger position than most." He noted that 40 percent of Maine's housing stock is in modular construction and Keiser accounts for about 17.5 percent of that construction.

Lazar said R.J. Finlay & Co. was attracted to Keiser because of its high-quality workmanship. "We think it's a remarkable company," he said.

In a statement issued Thursday afternoon, Robert Finlay, R.J. Finlay & Co.'s chairman and chief executive officer, said, "Keiser's specific focus and reputation for quality construction and satisfied customers make it the perfect complement to the R.J. Finlay & Co. family of companies."

Other companies owned by R.J. Finlay throughout the United States range from a tax-credit management company to a construction management company focusing on green initiatives.

ldixon@sunjournal.com