Electric Business

Structural steelwork specialist Harry Peers & Co has been sold in a deal worth £30m. Severfield will acquire 100% of its share capital for an initial cash consideration of £18m, with a £12m performance-based sum payable in late 2020. Harry Peers specialises in the nuclear, process industries and power generation sectors and reported turnover of £21.2m for the financial year ended 30 April 2019.

Soft play equipment specialist Active Learning has been taken over by fellow Nottingham manufacturer Global Solutions for Clothing for an undisclosed six figure sum. The deal supports Global Solutions for Clothing’s Pretend to Bee children’s costume brand. It has created costumes for 25 years, and counts The Walt Disney Corporation among its customers.

Mid-market private equity investor LDC has backed a management buyout of SRL Traffic Systems for £24m. SRL is the UK’s leading manufacturer of portable traffic lights and equipment. SRL has a nationwide network of 26 depots as well as the industry’s widest range of temporary pedestrian and traffic light systems. SRL employs c. 140 people, operates a fleet of more than 7,500 units and reported turnover of £15.6m for the financial year ended April 2018.

Manchester corporate finance specialist Convex Capital has been sold to London law firm Rosenblatt for £22m. The majority of the consideration is to be paid in shares, with a maximum of 40% to be paid in cash from existing resources. The deal is expected to generate a regular flow of fee-based work for Rosenblatt’s corporate division.

Redditch audio production company SSE Audio has acquired UK audio rental and flight case manufacturer BCS Audio. Founded in 1976 by John and Heather Penn, SSE Audio offers pro audio services including rentals, sales and installations. It has grown significantly in recent years with acquisitions of fellow UK audio businesses Wigwam and Capital Sound. It was bought out by Canadian firm Solotech last year.

Private equity investor LDC has supported a secondary buyout of precision engineering firm ELE Advanced Technologies from Albion Capital and Maven Capital Partners. ELE is a leading manufacturer of specialist components for aerospace, industrial gas turbines, and commercial diesel sectors, with its clients including Rolls-Royce, Safran, Siemens, GE Avio, GE Power and MAN Diesel & Turbo. It generated turnover of £14m and employs more than 180 people at facilities in Colne, Lancashire and Trencin, Slovakia.

Fastenex (Industrial Fasteners), the Willenhall-based holding company of NDB Engineering, has secured a multimillion-pound funding package to acquire Company Fasteners (Cofast). Based in Plymouth, Cofast supplies fastenings and bearings to clients in the South West that include the Devonport Royal Dockyard. NDB Engineering's range of niche products cater to the defence, aerospace, naval and energy sectors, among others.

Medicinal cannabis investment firm World High Life has announced a £9m deal to buy British cannabis oil brand Love Hemp, as it seeks to grow its European business. World High Life intends to fund the deal in part through a £5m share placing. Based in London, Love Hemp's cannabidiol (CBD) and hemp products are stocked by the likes of Sainsbury's, Ocado, Holland and Barrett and WH Smith. A growing number of cannabis companies have either listed or are seeking floatations in London, hoping that the UK will be at the forefront of the sector's expansion in Europe, with a particular focus on Germany

Thirsk-based All Steels Trading has completed the acquisition of Bromford Iron & Steel from OSSL Group. Bromford Iron & Steel has a 200-year history manufacturing hot rolled long products. It employs 38 people in Oldbury, where the local history in iron and steel processing has been traced back as far as 1610. Established in 2006, All Steels Trading is an £80m turnover steel trading firm.

Automotive products supplier Bremsen Technik has acquired Remanufactured Systems (RSL) as part of a seven-figure funding package from HSBC UK. The deal adds 12 staff to its existing headcount of 89, and adds commercial vehicle remanufacturing to its capabilities. It has doubled in size and tripled its headcount in recent years, with this move boosting its turnover to £30m from £25m in 2018.