LDC to invest in UK manufacturing
PRIVATE equity provider LDC has pledged to invest a further £200m in UK based manufacturing and engineering businesses by the end of next year.
The move by the mid-market private equity group comes following its £250m investment in the sector in the last two years.
LDC claims the move will see it commit up to £500m in investments by 2015 since it focused on the sector in 2011.
It said it will continue to focus on firms with specialist manufacturing capabilities across a wide range of niche industrial sectors such as aerospace, power generation and oil and gas, and will be open to all UK mid-market businesses in the £10m to £150m enterprise value range.
The move comes after LDC enjoyed a successful year in the industrials sector, completing seven new investment transactions into manufacturing and specialist engineering businesses in 2013, whilst also realising capital gains of over £95m from the sector.
In the North of England, this included the investment in Haydock-based ATG Access, the £62m management buyout of firefighting products manufacturer Angus Fire in Bentham, near Lancaster, and its investment in Gateshead-based precision engineering firm, Express Engineering. Activity also included the strategic exit from Burnley-based aerospace engineering group MB Aerospace.
Ged Gould, director and co-head of LDC in the North West, said: “After another successful year of supporting Northern manufacturers, we continue to build momentum in the sector and show that high quality manufacturing or specialist engineering companies with an ambitious management team represent good investment opportunities. A partnership with the right private equity provider can deliver value through continued investment in operations and exploration of new products, services and markets, helping businesses to reach their full potential.
“From LDC’s perspective, the opportunity for Northern engineering and manufacturing businesses remains as strong as ever and by increasing our investment target to £500m, we are clearly demonstrating our long-term commitment to support engineering and manufacturing across the country.”
