Crane Building Services & Utilities acquired by Exponent Private Equity

Exponent agreed on 28 October 2026 to acquire Crane Building Services & Utilities from Crane Company, in a carve-out separating the division’s international operations from their American parent. Press reports placed the enterprise value at £100–350M, an EV/EBITDA multiple of 5x–12x on estimated 2026 earnings. Completion remained subject to employee consultation and regulatory approvals. President Chris Gray continued to lead the business, with Ron Krisanda appointed chairman. Founded in 1908 and headquartered at Ipswich, Crane BS&U designs and manufactures the components through which fluids are joined, controlled and isolated: the couplings and flange adaptors connecting water mains, the valves regulating flow and pressure in heating and cooling systems, and the fittings through which gas networks are tapped and repaired under pressure. It employs more than 460 people across four sites, among them a manufacturing plant at Hitchin, and serves over 3,000 customers in Britain, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Revenue amounted to £100–200M. Supply agreements with every major British water and gas utility underpin the position, those companies specifying approved products for networks they will operate for decades, and the approval process deters substitution once a component has been designed into a system. Separating a division of this kind requires establishing the systems, the supply arrangements and the legal entities that the parent provided, in four countries simultaneously, which is the work Exponent had undertaken in nine previous carve-outs, among them Optimas International earlier in the year. Crane Company had concentrated on aerospace, defence and process industries, within which building and utility components represented a different market with different customers, and the brands assembled since 2003 through the purchases of Viking Johnson, Helden, WASK and Hattersley sat apart from that focus.

The acquisition of Crane Building Services & Utilities is part of the growth strategy of Exponent Private Equity, which already has several external growth operations under its belt, notably OFS in 2026.