MARKHAM, ON -- EMS provider Artaflex hired former SMTC cofounder Paul Walker to provide consulting advice. Instead, he bought them out.

Walker, founder and former chief executive of SMTC, headed a group of former SMTC executives who purchased the firm for an undisclosed sum.

"The opportunity to acquire Artaflex with all its unique differentiators and to partner with Gerry Iuliano, the co-founder of Artaflex and Phil Woodard who was previously the COO at SMTC and who will take on a similar role at Artaflex, was just too great to pass up," Walker said, according to reports.

Artaflex is a contract assembler of printed circuit boards.

"After advising Artaflex for the past few months, it became more apparent than ever that the mid tier Canadian market is lacking a strong EMS provider with the product development, commercialization and manufacturing differentiators that Artaflex has to offer," Walker said.