Playland became a division of Superior International Industries in 1997. Superior International Industries, or as their customers know them, SII, was founded in 1991, by Rob Pepper and Ray Derbecker as a components supplier to both the commercial and residential playground industry. While building on their customer base, they partnered up with one of the original founders of Playland, Anthony Strickland, in 1997, to form the New Playland and push forward with a mission to build high quality commercial outdoor play products, at an affordable price, while maintaining the highest safety standards within the industry. The unique thing is that the new partnership was not just a group of investors and partners, they became a group who have invested their life within the playground industry and can proudly say they are one of the only playground companies in the market today that have leaders that are lifelong "Playground People".