People: Investment director appointed at LDC; New hire at Andrew Jackson; Accountant named as Forgemasters CFO; and more

LDC, the UK’s leading mid-market private equity investor, has promoted Dan Smith to investment director following a year of successful investments and exits.

Since joining LDC in August 2015, Smith has been involved in a number of the region’s most notable transactions. This has included supporting the firm’s £31.8m investment in NBS, the commercial arm of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), in addition to the management buyouts of Skipton-headquartered Sigmat and Knaresborough-based Pelsis, the leading European manufacturer of branded pest control products.

He has also played an important role in LDC’s reinvestment in cycling parts and accessories distributor ZyroFisher and most-recently the £217m IPO of global games label Team17.

John Garner, head of LDC in Yorkshire and the North East, said: “Dan has made a significant contribution to the business over the past year and this is a well-deserved promotion. We’re committed to supporting the ambitions of small and medium-sized businesses from across the region and investing in our people is key to this. Over the past 12 months Dan has not only formed excellent relationships with the management teams we back, he has established a strong track record for delivering success.”

Smith added: “I’ve had the opportunity to support some truly fantastic businesses over the past 12 months and with a strong pipeline of activity for the year ahead I’m looking forward to working with the team to further support the growth ambitions of businesses across Yorkshire and the North East.”

LDC launched in Yorkshire and the North East in 1989 and since then the team has backed more than 60 management teams with more than £500m of equity, cementing itself as the leading private equity firm in the region.  Today it supports a portfolio that employs more than 5,000 people and collectively generates more than £700m.

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Law firm Andrew Jackson has today announced the appointment of Hannah Farmer, who joins the firm’s growing team as an associate.

Farmer’s expertise across a range of range of legal disciplines and, in particular, experience in agriculture and rural affairs will add further value to the firm’s client offer across their regional offices.

Farmer said: “I am delighted and excited to join a firm that has made such great strides regionally, nationally and overseas, yet remains committed to delivering a service with personal care and attention at its heart.

“I’m already aware of the excellent working relationships Andrew Jackson’s agricultural and landed estates team has with the rural farming communities in Yorkshire, as well as their work in these areas nationally and internationally. I look forward to using my experience to help provide an exceptional service that is tailored to the needs of the businesses and individuals we work with.”

She has advised rural land owners and farmers on a wide range of property matters including the acquisition and disposal of freehold land as well as agricultural tenancies and easements.

Farmer has also advised a number of commercial clients on matters such as the disposal and acquisition of freehold property alongside negotiating and completing commercial purchases from large workshops to industrial estates and public houses. Hannah regularly advises the UK agricultural industry, as both an elected Council Member to the Agricultural Law Association (ALA) and an active member of the Country Land and Business Association (CLA).

Head of the firm’s agriculture and landed estates department, Helen Mellors, said: “Hannah’s specific knowledge of agriculture and landed estates clients combined with her experience advising clients across commercial property transactions is an ideal fit for the firm.”

Mark Pearson-Kendall, managing partner of Andrew Jackson, added: “Hannah’s extensive experience and specialist knowledge of her sector clearly demonstrates her commitment to providing the best possible levels of service to her clients. Hannah is a great fit for the team, as she has a clear record of delivering tailored legal advice and solutions that will add commercial value to our clients. I warmly welcome her to the team.”

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Sheffield based engineering specialist Sheffield Forgemasters International has appointed a new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) as the company restructures for the future.

Following recent announcements of executive changes at the company, Stephen Hammell takes on the position of CFO and a place on the board of directors at Sheffield Forgemasters.

Hammell is a Chartered Accountant with over 20 years’ experience in corporate finance, banking and financial leadership, having worked at PwC, Yorkshire Bank, Grant Thornton, eBECS Ltd and more recently, as CFO of ECSC Group plc, a cyber security specialist quoted on the London Stock Exchange.

Chief executive, Dr Graham Honeyman, said: “I have been working very hard to secure key personnel to sit on the board of directors and choosing somebody with an appropriate breadth of experience for the position of CFO was crucial.

“Steve brings a superb amount of insight into the business and his past experience working with and for financial institutions and banks, combined with high level experience within industry makes him a real asset to the company moving forward.

“I am pleased to announce that we are also nearing completion of other key appointments of a chief operating officer, which is a new role, and a chairman. These will be confirmed over the coming months.”

Brendan Kendrick has recently been appointed as company sales director and the other senior positions are due to be assigned by the end of summer.

Stephen Hammell, who lives in Selby, said: “I am delighted to be joining the board of one of the UK’s great engineering companies.

“I’m very much looking forward to working alongside the other company directors, as the business seeks to build on its unique standing in the engineering sector to develop the growing opportunities in the defence, nuclear, energy and power generation markets, both in the UK and internationally.

“This role brings a number of challenges, with the global engineering market remaining highly competitive. However, the unique calibre of people, skills and experience at Forgemasters means that we can compete on a worldwide stage in our chosen markets.

“I will be working with an established senior team at Forgemasters as we drive the business into new markets and will focus on the factors driving the long-term success of the company, including financing arrangements, people investment and plant upgrades.”

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Richard di Benedetto, the current president of Aetna International, one of the world’s largest health benefits businesses, has been appointed as a director and non-executive chairman of the Braintrain2020 board.

Sheffield-based Braintrain2020 is the organisation behind SleepCogni – a patented medical device providing a combined diagnostic and treatment system to help clinicians identify and treat sleep disorders.

di Benedetto’s appointment, along with his pledge of a personal six-figure investment, strategically coincides with the commencement of a £4.8m Series A fundraise for the commercialisation of SleepCogni.

Ahead of that process, SleepCogni’s main investors, led by investment firm Mercia Fund Managers, have also committed to providing follow-on funding in the next investment round.

di Benedetto brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to his new role having spent over 20 years leading healthcare companies. Alongside this new appointment, he will continue in his role at Aetna International. Prior to joining Aetna International, he served as CEO at Euromedic International – one of Europe’s largest private equity owned providers of diagnostic services, labs and cancer treatments. He also spent 15 years with GE Healthcare, most recently as President and CEO of their Eastern and African growth markets.

di Benedetto said: “As chairman of Braintrain2020, and also as a personal investor in SleepCogni, I see an enormous growth opportunity ahead of us with the potential to help many people live healthier lives.

“Demand for healthcare across the world has never been so great. Populations are increasing and ageing, people are better informed, technology continues to develop at pace, and there is an unprecedented increase in the prevalence of lifestyle-related diseases. Innovative approaches are required to meet these evolving demands and I passionately believe that we need to shift our focus from treatment to prevention.

“For this reason, I am very excited about SleepCogni. There is overwhelming clinical evidence which shows that disrupted sleep is a major factor in many physical and mental illnesses. If we can help people to rebuild healthy sleep patterns, we can improve their overall health and ultimately their quality of life.”

Richard Mills, Braintrain2020 founder and CEO, said: “Attracting such an experienced leader in the healthcare industry to the role of chairman is testament to our achievements to date and how far we have come in such a short period of time. We are delighted to have Richard’s backing and shared vision in place as we commence our fundraise and we have no doubt that his experience and knowledge will be instrumental in guiding and strengthening the management team as we look to commercialise SleepCogni into the US sleep clinic market in 2020.”