Tag Archives: Industrie

Sika makes binding offer to acquire Parex

Combining two “growth engines”, highly complementary in product offering and channel penetration

Sika has made a binding offer to acquire Parex from its current owner CVC Fund V. Parex is a leading manufacturer of mortar solutions including facade mortars, tile adhesives, waterproofing, and technical mortars. In 2018 the company generated sales of CHF 1.2 billion and an expected EBITDA of around CHF 195 million. With its expertise in mortar solutions for renovation and new builds, Parex participates in all phases of the construction life cycle. Parex has a particularly strong presence in distribution channels, combining recognised brands with R&D expertise and technical excellence. It is locally present in 23 countries with key positions in 8 core geographies and operates 74 plants around the world.

Paul Schuler, CEO of Sika: “Parex is an excellent company with well recognised brands and an impressive performance track record. The businesses of Parex and Sika are highly complementary. Using Parex technologies as a growth platform in all our 101 countries and cross-selling of our products to the well established distribution channels of Parex will generate great profitable growth. Parex’s excellent facade business can be leveraged in the entire Sika world. We warmly welcome all employees of Parex to the Sika Family. We look forward to working with the Parex team and we are excited about expanding our joint business operations.”

Eric Bergé, CEO of Parex: “Under CVC Fund V’s ownership, the Parex team has delivered a very strong performance, growing sales from EUR 750 million in 2013 to over EUR 1 billion. Over this 5-year period, Parex entered 3 new countries and opened 16 new plants, added 11 bolt-on acquisitions, and built a new international R&D center. Sika represents a great platform to continue to deliver on Parex’s ambitious growth plan and the combination creates new exciting opportunities in terms of offering new solutions to our customers and continuing our geographic expansion. I would like to thank our sponsor, CVC Capital Partners, our teams across the world, and our customers for their trust and support in these past five years, and we look forward to working with Sika in the future.”

With this acquisition Sika will further strengthen its leading position in construction chemicals and industrial adhesives and will reach sales in excess of CHF 8 billion. It will deepen and widen Sika’s growth platform. Its mortar business, which is a key growth technology for the group and one of its important earning contributors, will more than double in size to CHF 2.3 billion. Parex’s strong position in distribution channels will open up new business opportunities for Sika’s product range. Parex will gain access to Sika’s well established direct sales channels and Parex’s expertise in the facade and tile setting business will allow Sika to participate in these growing and attractive market fields.

Financial Parameters

Annual synergies are expected to be in the range of CHF 80-100 million. Purchase price represents a 11.3x EV / pro forma EBITDA 19E multiple which will come down to less than 8.5x EV/EBITDA, including full run-rate synergies. The acquisition is value enhancing to Sika shareholders and is expected to be accretive to Sika’s earnings per share from the first full year post closing. The financing of the transaction is secured by a bridge loan facility committed by UBS and Citi. Sika remains committed to maintaining a strong investment grade credit rating and intends to put in place a long-term funding structure comprising a combination of cash-on-hand, bank loans, and capital market instruments.

The acquisition is implemented in various steps. The parties have signed an exclusive binding offer. The completion of the transaction is subject to French works council consultation process and regulatory approvals and is expected in Q2/Q3 2019.

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Swedish expansion of airteam continues

Ratos

Ratos’s subsidiary airteam is continuing its expansion in Sweden through the acquisition of Creovent AB (Creovent) and Thorszelius Ventilation & Service AB (Thorszelius), leading installers of climate and ventilation solutions in the Stockholm and Uppsala regions.

airteam, a leading supplier of ventilation solutions in Denmark, is strengthening its market position in Sweden through the acquisition of Aurvandil AB, who owns the subsidiaries Creovent and Thorszelius. Together they have approximately 85 employees with offices in Stockholm and Uppsala. Pro forma sales in 2017 for both companies amounted to approximately SEK 235m and adjusted EBITA to SEK 24m. The companies offer efficient climate and ventilation solutions, including service and maintenance, to a customer base comprising property owners, construction companies and the public sector. This is airteam’s second acquisition in the Swedish market and its third bolt-on acquisition overall since Ratos became principal owner of the company in 2016.

“With the acquisition of Creovent and Thorszelius, airteam is continuing its strategic investments in Sweden, and together with the acquisition of Luftkontroll Energy in Örebro last year, airteam now has a strong market position in the expansive Mälardalen region. Creovent and Thorszelius are well-run companies with strong market positions in the Stockholm and Uppsala regions and have competent management teams, who will remain in their roles and be partners in the company moving forward. We welcome Creovent and Thorszelius to airteam and look forward with confidence to growing together in Sweden,” says Robin Molvin, Vice President of Ratos.

The acquisition is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2019 and is being financed by airteam without any capital contribution from Ratos.

For further information, please contact:
Robin Molvin, Vice President, Ratos, +46 8 700 17 15
Helene Gustafsson, Head of IR and Press, Ratos, +46 8 700 17 98

About Ratos:
Ratos is an investment company that owns and develops unlisted medium-sized Nordic companies. Our goal as an active owner is to contribute to the long-term and sustainable business development in the companies we invest in and to make value-generating transactions. Ratos’s portfolio consists of 12 medium-sized Nordic companies and the largest segments in terms of sales are Construction, Industrials and Consumer goods/retail. Ratos is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm and has a total of approximately 12,300 employees.

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CBPE invests in IDEAL Networks

CBPE

CBPE Capital (“CBPE”) has acquired a majority ownership position in IDEAL Networks, a market leading Industrial Technology business which provides portable handsets for data cable and network testing, validation and certification. CBPE is acquiring the business from its former parent, IDEAL INDUSTRIES Inc and will be investing alongside the incumbent management team led by Paul Walsh, CEO. Terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.

IDEAL Networks’ products improve the productivity of qualified engineers who install, test and maintain network cabling and services. They work by simulating data flow to provide network diagnostics, enabling the engineers to certify newly installed network cabling or to resolve network issues across both Local Area Networks (LAN) and Wide Area Networks (WAN). IDEAL Networks is a global business, with sales across the EMEA, North America, Latin America and Asia.

Its comprehensive portfolio of products means that IDEAL Networks is well positioned to take advantage of a high growth market driven by ever-increasing demands for rapid and reliable network connectivity to facilitate global trends of faster transmission of data, voice and video signals.

CBPE will work with management to build on IDEAL Networks’ reputation for product innovation and will invest in research and development. The business will continue to offer market leading products developed to suit the needs of its end users.

CBPE has a strong track record of acquiring subsidiaries or divisions from larger parents and supporting these in becoming successful standalone businesses. Examples from CBPE’s current and realised portfolio include: SAFECHEM, which was acquired from The Dow Chemical Company; Xafinity, which was acquired from the Equiniti Group; and BWA, which was acquired from Chemtura. CBPE will leverage this experience to support the management team in establishing IDEAL Networks as an independent market leader and in pursuing ambitious international growth.

Mathew Hutchinson, Partner, CBPE said:
“IDEAL Networks has successfully established a reputation for quality and service in an attractive and growing market, and we are confident that the business will thrive under independent ownership. We will work with the management team and support their commitment to continue to offer innovative products and services which match the needs of the customer base.”

Paul Walsh, CEO of IDEAL Networks said:
“We are delighted to be working with CBPE and look forward to establishing IDEAL Networks as a successful, independent market leader. IDEAL INDUSTRIES has been a supportive owner and has enabled us to reach this stage of our development. With CBPE, we are confident we have found a partner that will provide valuable input as we pursue our exciting growth plans.”

CBPE’s investment in IDEAL Networks was led by Mathew Hutchinson with support from Ben Lewis, James Whittington and Aqil Sohail. Mathew Hutchinson and Ben Lewis will join the Board of IDEAL Networks.

Reed Smith acted as legal advisers to CBPE and PMSI provided the commercial due diligence advice. William Blair acted as financial adviser to IDEAL INDUSTRIES Inc.

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Leadec closes Veltec sale to Plant Systems & Services PSS GmbH

Triton

Stuttgart/Niedernberg, 2018-12-21 – Today, the Leadec Group announced the closing of the sale of the Veltec Group to Plant Systems & Services PSS GmbH after receiving the competent competition authorities’ approval.

The signing took place on November 23, 2018. The Veltec Group was taken over retroactively as of December 31, 2017. It has been agreed to maintain silence on the framework conditions of the sale.

Leadec will completely focus on its strategic growth targets in the manufacturing industry, while Veltec will strengthen its position in the process industry with PSS as a strategic partner. The sale has no impact on Veltec’s current projects and framework contracts.

About Leadec

Leadec is the leading provider of technical services for the automotive and manufacturing industries. The company, which is headquartered in Stuttgart, employs almost 20,000 people worldwide. In 2017 Leadec earned sales of around EUR 900 million. For more than 50 years, Leadec has been supporting its customers along the entire production supply chain. The service provider is based at more than 200 locations, often directly at the customers’ plants and facilities.

Leadec’s global services comprise: Install (installation and automation, disassembly and reassembly), Maintain (production equipment maintenance and technical cleaning), Support (IFM/TFM and internal logistics) and Digitize&Optimize (process engineering and digital services) as well as other local services.

For more information about Leadec go to: www.leadec-services.com

About Veltec

Veltec is a leading European provider of technical maintenance services for the process and power plant industries, focusing on customers in Central and Northern Europe. Veltec currently has 9 branches and the Veltec service team supports customers in the process industries oil and gas, chemicals, life sciences, raw materials and power plants on site at 35 additional sites.

For more information about Veltec go to: www.veltec-services.com

About Plant Systems & Services PSS GmbH

Plant Systems & Services PSS GmbH is the holding company for a group of specialized companies that provide services for the energy and process industry, such as for power plants and chemical and steel companies, waste incineration plants and district heating suppliers.

The group is composed of four companies, including Etabo Energietechnik und Anlagenservice GmbH, which has its headquarters in Bochum, Germany and has more than 40 years of experience in construction and maintenance of pipelines and components for power plants and industrial sites in Germany. The group also comprises three smaller companies in other locations in North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony.

For more information about Plant Systems & Services PSS GmbH go to: www.elka-beteiligungs.de

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H.I.G. Portfolio Company Maillis Group Sells Wulftec to Duravant

HAMBURG – December 21, 2018 – The Maillis Group (“Maillis”), a portfolio company of H.I.G. Capital LLC (“H.I.G.”), and the world’s second largest manufacturer of end-of-line packaging equipment, has sold Wulftec International, Inc. (“Wulftec”) to Duravant, a global engineered equipment and automation solutions provider to the food processing, packaging and material handling sectors.

Wulftec is the market-leading provider of end-of-line packaging automation solutions in North America. Wulftec leverages decades of engineering expertise and manufacturing know-how to deliver highly customized and scalable solutions that address the most complex end-of-line packaging challenges across a diversified customer base. Founded in 1990, Wulftec is located in Ayer’s Cliff, Quebec.

Wolfgang Biedermann, Managing Director of H.I.G. Europe, commented: “Wulftec is the leader in the end-of-line packaging automation market with a truly compelling value proposition. The capability to deliver highly value-added solutions, and to provide around-the-clock customer service with a best in class technical support team are unmatched in the industry. Since our acquisition of Maillis, we have significantly invested into Wulftec’s expansion and management has done an outstanding job to drive the company’s strong growth trajectory”.

About Maillis
Established in 1968, Maillis is the world’s second largest manufacturer of end-of-line packaging equipment and offers its customers “one-stop solutions”. In addition to supplying consumables such as strapping and film products, Maillis produces innovative packaging machines under well-known brand names and offers its customers international after-sales services.

Maillis is an international company with seven production sites located in Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Canada and the United States, with approximately 1,300 employees. With more than 15,000 customers and a broad product portfolio, Maillis generates more than €260 million in revenues. The company’s customer base extends to the food and beverage, aluminium, steel, construction, timber and bailing industries and it is the exclusive or preferred supplier to major industrial and consumer products multinationals such as US Steel, Nestle, Coca Cola, P&G, Henkel, Pepsi, Mars, Lafarge, Alcoa, ArcelorMittal, Corus, Wall-mart and others. www.maillis.com.

About Duravant
Headquartered in Downers Grove, Illinois, Duravant is a global engineered equipment company with manufacturing, sales and service facilities throughout North America, Europe and Asia. Through their portfolio of operating companies, Duravant delivers trusted end-to-end process solutions for customers and partners through engineering and integration expertise, project management and operational excellence. With worldwide sales distribution and service networks, they provide immediate and lifetime aftermarket support to all the markets they serve in the food processing, packaging and material handling sectors. Duravant’s market-leading brands are synonymous with innovation, durability and reliability. Duravant is a portfolio company of Warburg Pincus. www.duravant.com

About H.I.G. Capital
H.I.G. is a leading global private equity and alternative assets investment firm with over €26 billion of equity capital under management.* Based in Miami, and with offices in New York, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Atlanta in the U.S., as well as international affiliate offices in London, Hamburg, Madrid, Milan, Paris, Bogotá, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, H.I.G. specializes in providing both debt and equity capital to small and mid-sized companies, utilizing a flexible and operationally focused/value-added approach:

  1. H.I.G.’s equity funds invest in management buyouts, recapitalizations and corporate carve-outs of both profitable as well as underperforming manufacturing and service businesses.
  2. H.I.G.’s debt funds invest in senior, unitranche and junior debt financing to companies across the size spectrum, both on a primary (direct origination) basis, as well as in the secondary markets. H.I.G. is also a leading CLO manager, through its WhiteHorse family of vehicles, and manages a publicly traded BDC, WhiteHorse Finance.
  3. H.I.G.’s real estate funds invest in value-added properties, which can benefit from improved asset management practices.

Since its founding in 1993, H.I.G. has invested in and managed more than 300 companies worldwide. The firm’s current portfolio includes more than 100 companies with combined sales in excess of €28 billion. For more information, please refer to the H.I.G. website at www.higcapital.com.

* Based on total capital commitments managed by H.I.G. Capital and affiliates.

 

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CVC Fund VII agrees to acquire 30% stake in Cosan Lubes Investments Limited

CVC Funds’ first investment in Latin America to help leading manufacturer and distributor of specialty lubricants with international expansion

CVC Capital Partners Fund VII today signed an agreement to acquire a 30% stake in Cosan Lubes Investments Limited (“Moove”), a leading Latin American manufacturer and distributor of specialty lubricants, from Cosan, one of the largest and most successful Brazilian conglomerates with assets in the energy and logistics sectors, all leaders in their respective industries. Cosan will remain the majority shareholder with a 70% stake following the closing of the transaction.

Moove is the sole manufacturer of Mobil-branded specialty lubricants in Brazil and has the exclusive rights to commercialize products in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia. Within Latin America, Moove sells via a network of exclusive distributors and directly to large industrial groups and OEMs. Since 2012, Moove initiated an expansion plan into Europe and now distributes mainly Mobil-branded specialty lubricants focused on industrial clients in the UK, France, Spain and Portugal.

Jean-Marc Etlin, Partner overseeing CVC’s private equity activities across Latin America based in São Paulo commented: “The partnership with Cosan presents a great opportunity for CVC Funds to invest for the first time in Latin America. We are looking forward to working closely with the excellent management teams of Cosan and Moove, leveraging our expertise and our global network to expand its footprint internationally.”

The transaction is subject to the customary approval process by the relevant regulatory authorities. Closing is expected in the first quarter of 2019.

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The Carlyle Group to Acquire Leading Aircraft Engine MRO Provider StandardAero from Veritas Capital

Carlyle

WASHINGTON, DC – Global alternative asset manager The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) today announced it has agreed to acquire StandardAero, a global provider of aftermarket engine maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services for the aerospace and defense industries, from Veritas Capital. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory conditions and is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of 2019. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Russell Ford, CEO of StandardAero, said, “We are excited to partner with The Carlyle Group, and we thank Veritas Capital for its support and partnership. We look forward to working with Carlyle to further our aggressive growth trajectory as we continue providing world-class services to our customers as one of the world’s best and largest independent MRO service providers.”

Adam J. Palmer, Managing Director and Global Head of Aerospace, Defense and Government Services for The Carlyle Group, said, “Russell Ford and the StandardAero team have built a reputation for industry-leading capabilities and customer service. StandardAero is well positioned in an attractive market and we look forward to building on its strong foundation by helping it grow and meet evolving customer needs.”

Ramzi Musallam, CEO and Managing Partner of Veritas Capital, said, “We have enjoyed our successful partnership with StandardAero.  Russ and the StandardAero team have generated robust growth while consistently delivering outstanding services to customers through a relentless commitment to excellence. The StandardAero partnership underscores Veritas’ commitment to growing and adding lasting value to businesses in the aerospace and defense industries.  We wish the StandardAero management team all the best in their next phase of growth.”

Founded in 1911, StandardAero is one of the world’s largest independent MRO providers offering extensive services and custom solutions for commercial aviation, business aviation, military and industrial power customers. As an OEM-aligned strategic partner, StandardAero has developed a reputation for quality and performance that drives a sustainable competitive advantage and positions the company for future growth

Equity for the investment will come from Carlyle Partners VII, an $18.5 billion fund that focuses on buyout transactions in the United States.

Credit Suisse, RBC Capital Markets LLC and Macquarie Capital served as financial advisors to Carlyle, and Latham & Watkins LLP served as legal advisor. Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs Merchant Banking Division, RBC Capital Markets LLC, Macquarie Capital, Barclays, Jefferies LLC, Nomura Securities and Goldman Sachs have agreed to provide debt financing for the transaction. Goldman Sachs & Co. served as lead financial advisor to StandardAero, and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC also acted as a financial advisor on the transaction, and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP served as legal advisor.

* * * * *

Contacts:

The Carlyle Group
Christa Zipf: +1 (212) 813-4578
christa.zipf@carlyle.com

Veritas Capital
Andrew Cole/David Millar/Julie Rudnick
Sard Verbinnen & Co
212.687.8080
VeritasCapital-SVC@sardverb.com

StandardAero
Kyle Hultquist:  +1 (480) 377-3192
kyle.hultquist@standardaero.com

* * * * *

About The Carlyle Group

The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) is a global alternative asset manager with $212 billion of assets under management across 339 investment vehicles as of September 30, 2018. Carlyle’s purpose is to invest wisely and create value on behalf of its investors, many of whom are public pensions. Carlyle invests across four segments – Corporate Private Equity, Real Assets, Global Credit and Investment Solutions – in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, North America and South America. Carlyle has expertise in various industries, including: aerospace, defense & government services, consumer & retail, energy, financial services, healthcare, industrial, real estate, technology & business services, telecommunications & media and transportation. The Carlyle Group employs more than 1,625 people in 31 offices across six continents.

Web: www.carlyle.com
Videos: www.youtube.com/onecarlyle
Tweets: www.twitter.com/onecarlyle
Podcasts: www.carlyle.com/about-carlyle/market-commentary

About StandardAero

StandardAero is one of the world largest independent maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) providers. StandardAero offers extensive MRO services and custom solutions for business aviation, commercial aviation, military and industrial power customers. About 6,000 professional, administrative and technical employees work in 38 major facilities around the world, with additional strategically located regional service and support centers all across the globe. More information can be found on the company’s web site at www.standardaero.com.

About Veritas Capital

Veritas Capital is a leading private equity firm that invests in companies that provide critical products and services, primarily technology and technology-enabled solutions, to government and commercial customers worldwide, including those operating in the aerospace & defense, healthcare, technology, national security, communications, energy, government services and education industries. Veritas seeks to create value by strategically transforming the companies in which it invests through organic and inorganic means. For more information on Veritas Capital and its current and past investments, visit www.veritascapital.com.

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3i to receive £77m in proceeds from refinancing of Aspen Pumps and distribution from Audley Travel

3I

3i-backed Aspen Pumps (“Aspen”) and Audley Travel (“Audley”) to return in aggregate £77m in cash to 3i Group plc (“3i Group”).

Aspen, the global leader in condensate pumps for air conditioning and refrigeration systems, has successfully completed a refinancing following the completion of the acquisition of Advanced Engineering, Aspen’s 5th bolt-on under 3i ownership.

3i Group plc will receive £52m from the transaction, representing more than 0.8x its original equity investment. This has been enabled by the significant growth and cash generation in the business, with revenues more than doubling since 3i’s investment in 2015. The refinancing ensures Aspen is well positioned to continue investing to further accelerate growth and deliver on its ambitious plans, both organically and through acquisitions, where it has a strong pipeline.

Audley, a leading provider of tailor-made experiential travel, has completed a £30m shareholder distribution funded by cash on balance sheet. 3i Group plc proceeds from this distribution are £25m. 3i invested in Audley in 2015 to build on its market-leading UK presence and support international growth, particularly in the US, where Audley has seen a 4x increase in bookings over the last 3 years.

Alan Giddins, Managing Partner and Head of Private Equity, commented:

“Aspen and Audley are both outstanding UK businesses, with leading market positions. Both companies have demonstrated strong organic earnings growth and cash conversion since our investments, which has enabled them to return cash to shareholders.

 

-Ends-

Download this press release   

 

For further information, contact: 

3i Group plc

Silvia Santoro

Shareholder enquiries

 Tel: +44 20 7975 3258

Email: silvia.santoro@3i.com
Kathryn van der Kroft

Media enquiries

 Tel: +44 20 7975 3021

Email: kathryn.vanderkroft@3i.com

 

 

Notes to editors:

About 3i Group

3i is a leading international investment manager focused on mid-market Private Equity and Infrastructure. Its core investment markets are northern Europe and North America. For further information, please visit: www.3i.com

About Aspen Pumps

Aspen Pumps is the global leader in the design, manufacture and assembly of condensate pumps focused on the air conditioning and refrigeration (“ACR”) sectors and is renowned for having the most reliable, installer friendly and innovative products. It also provides a range of market leading tools, rooftop mounting systems and accessories for ACR installers. For further information, please visit: https://www.aspenpumps.com

About Audley Travel

Audley is a leading provider of tailor-made experiential travel to over 80 destinations worldwide. Serving clients predominantly in the UK and US, Audley is renowned for its superior customer service and in-depth destination expertise delivered by its country specialists. For more information, please visit www.audleytravel.com

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Altamir sells its remaining stake in Albioma

Altamir

Paris, 11 December 2018 – Altamir has sold its remaining stake in Albioma to Impala, a diversified group with more than 6,000 employees operating in energy, manufacturing, brands and asset management.

Altamir’s investment in Albioma (ca. 5.5% of the share capital), which was held via Altamir’s subsidiary Financière Hélios, was sold for €31.7m.

Following this transaction, Altamir no longer holds any Albioma shares.

“I am very pleased that Jacques Veyrat has become a significant shareholder of Albioma, via the Impala group. His in-depth knowledge of the renewable energy sector at the international level should pave the way for accelerated growth at Albioma,” said Maurice Tchenio, Chairman of Altamir Gérance.

 

About Altamir

Altamir is a listed private equity company (Euronext Paris-B, ticker: LTA) founded in 1995 and with an investment portfolio of around €900m. Its objective is to provide shareholders with long term capital appreciation and regular dividends by investing in a diversified portfolio of private equity investments.

Altamir’s investment policy is to invest via and with the funds managed or advised by Apax Partners France and Apax Partners LLP, two leading private equity firms that take majority or lead positions in buyouts and growth capital transactions and seek ambitious value creation objectives.

In this way, Altamir provides access to a diversified portfolio of fast-growing companies across Apax’s sectors of specialisation (TMT, Consumer, Healthcare, Services) and in complementary market segments (mid-sized companies in Continental European countries and larger companies across Europe, North America and key emerging markets).

Altamir derives certain tax benefits from its status as an SCR (“Société de Capital Risque”). As such, Altamir is exempt from corporate tax and the company’s investors may benefit from tax exemptions, subject to specific holding-period and dividend-reinvestment conditions.

For more information: www.altamir.fr

Contact

Claire Peyssard-Moses

Tel.: +33 (0)1 53 65 01 74

E-mail: investors@altamir.fr

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BBS Automation acquires industrial software specialist ANT

eqt

EQT portfolio company BBS Automation today announced the add-on acquisition of ANT – a leading developer of innovative “Industry 4.0” solutions that digitize production workflows in large-scale manufacturing processes.

Headquartered in Munich, Germany, BBS Automation develops flexible and high-quality automation solutions for complex manufacturing and testing processes. With production sites in Germany, the US, China and Malaysia, BBS Automation supports a diverse network of blue-chip customers on a global scale. EQT Mid Market Europe and EQT Mid Market Asia III jointly invested in BBS Automation alongside its founding families to support the growth ambitions of the company both organically and through add-on acquisitions.

BBS Automation and ANT – expanding offering of digital factory solutions

Better utilization of data analytics and IoT technologies represent an enormous opportunity for manufacturing companies across all sectors. The ability to increase the efficiency of assembly processes, allow for more rigorous testing and quality management practices as well as to enable predictive maintenance are only some of the manifold potentials that can be provided by integrated digital factory solutions.

In order to expand its offering in this regard, BBS Automation acquired the industrial software specialist ANT Sp. z o.o, a developer of highly innovative “Industry 4.0” solutions headquartered in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 2006 by Jerzy Fulara and Andrzej Jarosz, ANT has developed a core platform (“AOS”) that can be combined with highly customized software modules tailored to the specific needs of each customer.

Among other features, solutions of ANT include digital dashboards to visualize production workflows, data analysis tools to optimize machine efficiency, assistants to enable predictive maintenance and tools to digitize processes like documentation and quality control. One key strength of ANT’s solutions is the high compatibility with existing hardware and software infrastructures. Data can be drawn from a wide range of available machine sensors, complemented with ANT data acquisition modules wherever required. Analyses can subsequently be fed into a wide range of ERP-systems. This makes ANT a valuable partner for the digital transformation of existing factories, proven in more than 450 system implementations in more than 30 countries to date.

The combination of BBS Automation’s deep industrial automation expertise with ANT’s experience in software and data analytics will strengthen the ability to jointly develop integrated “Industry 4.0” solutions.

Uwe Behr, Co-founder of BBS Automation, comments: “In ANT we found our ideal counterpart among industrial software developers: ANT draws on a remarkable sector experience and truly understands the needs of its customers in their respective end markets, acting in close partnership with its clients to develop customized solutions of highest quality. With every new implementation they expand their ‘toolkit’ of capabilities. We are looking forward to partner up with its founders to combine our capabilities and jointly develop new innovative solutions that will allow our customers to master the digital transformation of their assembly and testing processes.”

Andrzej Jarosz, CEO and Co-founder of ANT adds: “Over the course of the last twelve years we expanded the depth and scope of our solution offering and were looking for a strong partner to further accelerate our growth. Our customers increasingly request us to serve them on a global scale. The global platforms of BBS Automation and EQT will allow us to better serve customers internationally. In addition, we see strong demand for our solutions in new end markets that BBS Automation already serves today and for which we will now work on customized solutions together.”

Andreas Fischer, Partner at EQT Partners and Investment Advisor to EQT Mid Market Europe concludes: “Both BBS Automation and ANT have a strong entrepreneurial culture and share a passion to build best-in-class solutions for their customers. EQT is thrilled to support this add-on acquisition only six months after investing in the company. This transaction is a strong fit, not only in terms of synergistic technologies and geographic expansion potential, but especially in terms of the cultural fit of both businesses and we welcome the decision of ANT’s founders to stay on board. EQT looks forward to jointly develop BBS Automation’s positioning as a key enabler of Industry 4.0 production systems.”

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