May 21, 2026
Phoenix Lighting Acquires Rig-A-Lite In Industrial Deal
The companies serve overlapping markets across hazardous and heavy-duty applications
Phoenix Lighting has acquired Rig-A-Lite, a Houston-based manufacturer of specification-grade industrial and hazardous location lighting. The transaction closed May 14, according to an announcement from Phoenix and its private equity backer, JMC Capital Partners.
Rig-A-Lite goes to market through a mix of C&I lighting agents and electrical supply agents with exposure to the industrial project market. The company's product line covers hazardous-rated high-bays, NSF-certified fixtures for food processing environments, vapor tights, LED area lights for wet and marine conditions, and emergency systems for demanding industrial applications. Phoenix, founded in 1892 and headquartered in Milwaukee, serves ports, mining, marine, aviation, hazardous location, and government markets.
Complementary Portfolios, Familiar Territory
The two companies occupy similar market space, and the combination is straightforward to read. Rig-A-Lite adds Houston manufacturing, an NSF-certified product catalog, and an established agent network. Phoenix brings distribution reach and the financial backing of JMC Capital Partners, which has built a pattern of acquiring businesses in engineered electrical, lighting, and infrastructure categories.
Rig-A-Lite will continue operating under its own brand from its Houston facility, a useful address for a hazardous location specialist given the concentration of petrochemical, refinery, and offshore industrial work along the Gulf Coast.
Rig-A-Lite’s leadership team and employees are staying in place, Phoenix said. In a segment where rep relationships and product knowledge carry real weight, that continuity is not a small detail.
A Familiar Pattern In The Segment
The deal arrives roughly six months after Cooper Lighting Solutions completed its acquisition of Nemalux, a Calgary-based manufacturer focused on hazardous location LED lighting for oil and gas, chemical processing, and related industrial sectors. Cooper, part of Signify, kept Nemalux's Canadian manufacturing base intact and folded the brand into its existing portfolio.
Two acquisitions in six months, both in the harsh and hazardous category, both preserving brand identity post-close. The industrial lighting segment has long rewarded specialists, and buyers appear willing to pay for that specialization rather than build it.
For stakeholders in this niche space, the near-term picture looks stable. The longer question, as with any acquisition, is how the combined company's channel strategy develops once the integration settles in.
