Wilmington-based Apache Supply Inc. and Coastal Contractor Supply have been acquired by Ram Tool Construction Supply Co., a Birmingham, Alabama-based construction supply distributor, according to an announcement Monday.

The acquisition, made for an undisclosed amount, will allow Ram Tool to grow in the Carolinas, an area that has seen growth in the construction field.

"We're very excited to be in Wilmington," Page Naftel, president of Ram Tool, said in a news release. "We've seen in recent years how active the Carolina markets are and we've had a lot of success in Charleston and Raleigh. We know there's more opportunity on the coast; we just need to be able to get to it more quickly. Having a branch in Wilmington will allow us to do exactly that."

Ram Tool will operate out of Apache Supply’s location at 64 Darlington Ave. until it finalizes plans for another larger branch, according to the release.

Because Ram Tool had already been servicing projects in and around the Wilmington area, it made sense to open a location in the city, said Mike Doyle, marketing director with Ram Tool.

Both Apache Supply and Coastal Contractor Supply will now operate as Ram Tool.

Ram Tool, which has over 1,500 employees, will be adding some Apache Supply and Coastal Contractor Supply employees to its team, but others decided to either not work with Ram Tool or they were deemed not a good fit, Doyle said.

The number of those not joining Ram Tool is less than 10, he said.

Ram Tool provides construction tools, equipment, anchors and fasteners, personal protective equipment, fall protection equipment and more.

There are 40 Ram Tool branches in the U.S., including one each in Charlotte, Raleigh and Greensboro, and the supplier delivers 700,000 annual orders to job sites in the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Texas and Oklahoma, according to the release.

Apache Supply, founded in 1991, and Coastal Contractor Supply, located at 2936 Orville Wright Way, sell fasteners and construction tools and supplies primarily in the Carolinas.

"Both Apache Supply and Coastal Contractor Supply serve the same customers that we do,” Naftel said.