Black Country manufacturer poised to continue growth after £5m MBO
A BLACK Country manufacturing business has undergone an £5.4m MBO, backed by private equity.
Kingswinford-based Clamason Industries is one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of precision-pressed products.
It is now set to boost its capacity, aided by funds from investor Connection Capital.
Following the MBO, the firm is now headed by existing directors; Neil Geoghegan (managing director), Paul Edwards (operations), Steve Davenport (supply chain) and Ian Davies (sales) with new additions Steve Hewitt (finance) and Peter Williamson (chairman).
Connection Capital clients invested the £5.4m to acquire a majority stake in the business, which makes a diverse range of high spec parts and bespoke components for the medical, power, consumer goods and automotive sectors.
Clamason employs more than 200 people, who based at the firm’s factory in Kingswinford and at a site in Slovakia.
The company supplies Delphi, Bosch, Visteon, Sanofi, Schneider Electric and Siemens among other blue chip clients and its components are also used in Daimler, Volkswagen, Ferrari, Nissan, Volvo and General Motors’ vehicles.
Established in 1947, Clamason has a long record of sustained growth, strong and well-founded revenue and profit forecasts and significant ongoing opportunities to expand and develop the business over the next few years. It is already in the process of doubling the size of its Slovakian facility, and has secured many new long-term contract wins with many more in the pipeline.
Mr Geoghegan said: “This is a very exciting moment in Clamason’s history. As we embark on the next stage of building our business, this investment will give us the financial scope to exploit growth opportunities with both new and existing clients and service areas.
“For us, it’s a real endorsement that so many private investors have seen the value in our company and are keen to back us as we put the next phase of our strategy into action.”
Connection Capital said Clamason’s international client base and existing production capabilities in Europe put it in a good position to withstand the risks thrown up by uncertainty over Britain’s forthcoming exit from the EU, while the structure of the MBO is intended to enable the firm to exploit new growth opportunities.
Bernard Dale, partner at Connection Capital, said: “Clamason has real momentum and this investment will provide it with the vital financial capacity it needs to capitalise on its potential to grow and develop its business.
“Being a leading manufacturer in its field, boasting numerous long-term blue-chip contracts across a diversified range of capabilities and industries, with a consistent growth record, a strong order book and an established base in Europe, this asset-backed MBO proved a highly popular investment opportunity for our clients.”
