Norlee Group (NLG), an electrical and technology contracting company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, announced on October 1 that it has acquired IEM Electric, Inc., an industrial electrical contractor based in Hickory, North Carolina. The transaction closed on September 30, 2026. Norlee says the deal gives it a presence in North Carolina and expands its industrial electrical, controls, automation, and maintenance capabilities.
The asset.
Paul Brooks Jr. founded IEM Electric in 1993. The company performs industrial electrical contracting and serves customers in food processing, chemical, automotive, steel, cable, material handling, and pharmaceutical markets, with controls, automation, and maintenance work alongside its installation business.
Norlee says IEM will begin operating under the Norlee Group name and brand once the integration period is complete, and that the IEM team will remain with the company, providing continuity for customers the business has served for more than three decades.
The platform.
Norlee supports projects across the Southeast with a workforce of more than 800 professionals. It provides electrical and technology contracting, MEP design engineering, underground infrastructure, and specialty services to healthcare, multi-family, hospitality, commercial, education, industrial, manufacturing, and public works customers. CEO Wally Budgell said IEM brings the technical expertise, customer relationships, and experienced people Norlee looks for, that its industrial and maintenance capabilities complement Norlee’s existing platform, and that the deal establishes a foundation in North Carolina.
Heartwood Partners, a Norwalk, Connecticut–based private equity firm, says it made a growth investment in Norlee on October 28, 2024, partnering with Budgell and the existing management team; White Wolf Capital announced its exit from Norlee through the sale to Heartwood. Heartwood described Norlee’s August 2026 acquisition of Vintage Electric in Gainesville, Florida, as its seventh add-on since that investment. Earlier deals named by Heartwood and Norlee include AEC Electrical, Regency Electric, and Allstate Electric in Jacksonville and Ireland Electric in Augusta, Georgia.
Industrial work, under one name.
Heartwood put Norlee’s workforce at about 600 when it invested in 2024, and Norlee cited more than 700 in its May 2026 Ireland Electric announcement. IEM adds a business oriented toward plant customers, with controls, automation, and maintenance scopes, and is Norlee’s first in North Carolina; the earlier add-ons named above are all in Florida and Georgia.
The branding plan also differs from earlier deals. Norlee said Regency Electric would continue to operate as a subsidiary and that Ireland Electric would keep operating with its existing leadership and team. For IEM, Norlee says the business will move to the Norlee Group name after integration, while keeping its people.
What it means.
For owners of industrial electrical, controls, and plant maintenance contractors in the Carolinas and the broader Southeast, Norlee is a private equity–backed regional platform that has now made a North Carolina acquisition to add industrial capability. Owners preparing for conversations with buyers like this should be able to show revenue by end market and by customer plant, the split between maintenance and service work and project work, the share of revenue under recurring plant agreements, controls and automation capabilities, and how much of the customer relationships sit with the owner versus the field and project management team. They should also be clear on whether keeping their company name after closing matters to them.
Run an industrial electrical or controls contractor?
Schryver & Co. advises trades owners with roughly $5 million to $100 million of revenue, including industrial and commercial electrical contractors. We help owners understand which regional platforms and other buyers would be interested in their business, how those buyers would evaluate it, and what to prepare before the first conversation. Email Will at will@schryverco.com.
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