JR Automation Technologies

JR Automation Technologies

Bryan Jones and Paul Brinks launched JR Automation as a two-man operation in 1980. The firm grew from a tool-and-die shop into a custom automation engineering house serving heavy manufacturing, eventually employing over 2,000 people across more than 20 facilities in the United States and Canada. Crestview Partners acquired a majority stake in 2015, accelerating an acquisition spree that added firms like Esys Automation, Doerfer, and Halderman to its capabilities. The company designs and builds custom automated manufacturing systems for the automotive, aerospace, life sciences, consumer goods, and e-commerce fulfillment industries. Its business model combines advanced robotics, vision-guided systems, and material-handling solutions delivered as turnkey assembly lines. Named customers have included Ford, GM, Tesla, and Medtronic. Before the Hitachi sale, Crestview had expanded JR's Asian and European reach through strategic add-ons, establishing an operational presence in China and the Netherlands. Hitachi acquired JR Automation from Crestview Partners in a deal that closed in September 2019, valuing the company at $1.425 billion (per Hitachi, September 2019). The acquisition folded JR into Hitachi's Industrial IoT and smart manufacturing division, giving it a new parent company with deep ties to Japanese industrial supply chains. Post-acquisition, the firm has operated as a subsidiary of Hitachi Astemo, maintaining its headquarters in Holland, Michigan, alongside global engineering centers in Europe and Asia. What structurally differentiated JR from rival integrators was its willingness to consolidate a fragmented market through serial acquisitions while retaining the frontline engineering talent that won long-term contracts. Under Hitachi, it now bridges a gap few competitors can address: Japanese capital and components paired with North American custom engineering and a blue-chip client roster built over four decades.