Arlington Capital deal provides exit for LDC

LDC’s Leeds office has exited its investment in engineering group MB Aerospace.

US-based private equity group Arlington Capital Partners has taken a majority stake in the Burnley-based business.

A statement said the deal would provide “significant funding” for a series of acquisitions in the US.

MB, which has annual sales of around £53m, has bases in the US, Derby and Scotland where it makes aeroplane engine components for customers such as Rolls-Royce, Boeing and Pratt & Whitney.

Chief executive Craig Gallagher, who led the original management buyout of the company from engineering group Motherwell Bridge in 2007, said: “This landmark deal represents a great vote of confidence in our US and UK employees and operations, as well as providing the group with significant opportunities for further expansion in the months and years ahead.

“Our vision of creating a truly world-class aerospace business focused on aero-engine components is developing at pace, with the acquisitions in the past 15 months of Gentz Aero of Detroit and Thomson Aero of Somerset allowing us to further grow our manufacturing operations whilst securing significant remit extensions for our supply chain management services and complementary engineering support services.”

Peter Manos, managing partner at Arlington, said: “This deal creates a global platform with a unique focus on providing manufacturing, engineering and supply chain management services for mature and legacy engine platforms, and we believe the company’s strong growth prospects will be further enhanced with additional acquisitions.” 

John Garner, director and head of LDC in Yorkshire and the North East, said: “In MB Aerospace, we recognised the opportunity to partner with a high-quality management team and support a business with significant organic and acquisitive growth potential.

“The company has developed into an international components manufacturer of scale, capitalising on a buoyant aerospace and defence industry by increasing its production capabilities and establishing a presence in North America through strategic acquisition.”