Manitowoc Co. has received approval from the U.S. Justice Department's antitrust division to acquire British firm Enodis PLC after agreeing to sell Enodis’s ice machine business in the U.S.. The move follows similar antitrust clearances in Europe, where Manitowoc agreed to divest European ice machine businesses. The affected units operate under the Scotsman, Ice-O-Matic, Simag, Barline, Icematic, and Oref brand names. The deal is still subject to final court approval.
Manitowoc had announced the $2.11 billion deal at the end of June following a bidding war with Illinois Tool Works for the broad-based foodservice equipment manufacturer, which markets a series of prominent equipment brands in the U.S., including Cleveland, Convotherm, Dean, Delfield, Frymaster, Garland, KE-O-Matic, Jackson, Lincoln, Merco-Savory, Merrychef, US Range and Varimixer.