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12/2022

WESTBRIDGE CAPITAL takes majority stake in Alpine Fire Engineers

UNITED KINGDOM Facility Management / Maintenance / Security & Guarding EV 50M - 150M GBP

Context

Officially concluded in December 2022, the definitive agreement secures a majority stake in Alpine Fire Engineers for the acquiring private equity firm WestBridge. This secondary buyout formally organizes the complete exit of Soho Square Capital, concluding an initial investment cycle that began in 2018 under the supervision of Director David Steel and Consultant Howard Chan. During its four-year holding period, Soho Square Capital financed expansion plans that successfully multiplied sales and EBITDA metrics by over fourfold. To execute this ownership transition, WestBridge injects an exact equity ticket of £18.7 million to capture Alpine Fire Engineers, marking the tenth active investment finalized directly from the WestBridge Fund II vehicle. The structured corporate handover empowers the existing management team to remain in place and execute an independent strategy focused on expanding into new sectors and executing strategic bolt-on acquisitions. At the time of the transaction, Alpine Fire Engineers demonstrated a robust financial profile, recording an annual turnover of for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2022. The strategic rationale articulated by the investment board of WestBridge capitalizes on the increasing regulatory requirements driving compliance within the niche mechanical fire protection market. The execution of this middle-market transaction was supported by a dedicated advisory consortium. Soho Square Capital and Alpine Fire Engineers retained Clearwater International to provide comprehensive corporate finance guidance. Legal structuring for Soho Square Capital and the acquired business was coordinated by Addleshaw Goddard. To complete the pre-transaction audits, the exiting shareholders mandated Grant Thornton to deliver the financial due diligence reports, while Strategy & was retained to execute the commercial due diligence protocols.

Previously, Alpine Fire Engineers had been acquired in an LBO by Soho Square Capital in 2018.

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Target

The service portfolio of Alpine Fire Engineers relies on mechanical fire suppression systems designed and managed across the United Kingdom. Headquartered in Greater Manchester, the business was officially founded in 1992. The corporate infrastructure focuses strictly on deploying complex fixed fire suppression systems for a diversified industrial client base. Field technicians project manage and maintain these critical safety installations for operators active within the logistics, food and beverage, automotive, aerospace, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and retail sectors. At the operational level, the executive committee driving these technical services includes Chief Executive Officer Steve Nanda, Chief Financial Officer Mark Jones, Service and Business Development Director Louise Plant, Proposals Director Rob Brennan, and Operations Director Mark Thewlis.

Ent. Value

Equity Value

Multiples

EV / Revenue

EV / EBITDA

EV / EBIT

Historical Financials (GBP)

Year
Rev
EBITDA
EBIT
2022
2021

Other operations with Alpine Fire Engineers

List of similar M&A transactions (Date, Acquirer, Target, Country, Sub-sector)
DateAcquirerTargetCountrySector
05/2018Soho Square CapitalAlpine Fire EngineersUNITED KINGDOMSecurity & Guarding

REFERENCES

Valuation range: EV 50M - 150M GBP

Revenue range: 50M - 100M GBP

EBITDA range: 5M - 25M GBP

Note: This page provides detailed data on a private equity M&A transaction. Detailed and exact financial metrics for the acquisition of Alpine Fire Engineers by WESTBRIDGE CAPITAL are reserved for mynth community members. Register for free to unlock full data.

Authors: This transaction was contributed by a verified mynth contributor and cross-checked against available transaction documents and official company communications.

Press release: view release

Target: alpine fire engineers

Acquirer: westbridge capital