The marriage of cymbal manufacturer Sabian Inc. and drum equipment maker Billdidit Inc. will do more than increase the Cape Breton-based target’s distribution and customer acceptance. It will also help to develop a niche manufacturer in the Sydney area.

Sabian, based in Meductic, N.B., near Fredericton, said Monday it has paid an undisclosed amount for a majority stake in Billdidit, bringing the Sydney company’s unique range of drum gear into the Sabian catalogue.

While Sabian has operated for 30 years and has customers around the world, Billdidit started about five years ago to manufacture and distribute the designs created by Bill Coady, a multifaceted inventor with a passion for drumming. Its first product was the Coady Clutch, which allows a drummer to close his hi hat (two cymbals that open and close using a foot pedal) while using both feet for the dual base-drum pedals.

The union of Sabian and the maker of the Coady Clutch will obviously help Billdidit expand in the music market. What’s less apparent and just as important is that the deal will help it to grow as a more broad-based manufacturer and prototyping operation.

“There’s a giant hole in manufacturing in North America right now as so many things have moved to China,” said Billdidit CEO Joe Menchefski in a phone interview Tuesday. “There are industries like the music industry where it’s common to sell 5,000 to 10,000 units of a product, not the 100,000 you’d expect in manufacturing a product. It’s a huge leap of faith to launch a product with $20,000 to $30,000 in tooling fees when you don’t know if the market will be that consequential.”

Menchefski is channeling the money Billdidit received from Sabian into expanding the company’s machining and prototyping capacity, allowing a greater range of services and faster turnaround time. The nine-employee operation has a 3-D printer and 3-D design capabilities and great sophistication in its machining functions.  For example, the company has electroplating capabilities. Menchefski added it will soon be the only operation in Atlantic Canada that can do anodizing, which treats the surface of aluminum to make sure it doesn’t rust and to stop it from conducting electricity.

“We’re the perfect low-rate protyping partner for just about any company,” said Menchefski.  “Other producers may not be sure how to go about it, but we’ve got capabilities that people can use.”

Naturally, Billdidit is interested in continuing its work in the music industry, and Menchefski said it is already helping the business to be affiliated with the Sabian name. But the company is also looking for manufacturing and prototyping partnerships in other sectors, including marine environment, oil and gas and aerospace and defense.

Billdidit in the next few months will release several new products that are more sophisticated than its previous releases.  They include tools and hardware for the automotive market – the things that appeal to the mechanics and engineers that make up the Billdidit staff.

“We’re looking at three to four very significant launches in next six months,” he said. “These will be the most ambitious things we’ve done in terms of scope and depths. We do a lot of very innovative gadgets but none of them have been technically complex. We have a few products coming out that are big ticket items.”