BGF completes 3rd major investment in an Irish company this year
17 Dec 2019)
Tuesday 17th December 2019. Ireland’s largest growth capital investor, BGF, has invested €5 million to acquire a significant minority stake in one of the country’s leading aerospace and industrial engineering businesses; TEAM Accessories Limited (TEAM).
Based near Dublin airport, TEAM is an MRO providing overhaul, testing and repair services for the aerospace and industrial sectors. The core of the business in focussed on the overhaul of critical, high value accessories for jet engines. Components are flown in to the company’s specialist engineering site from across the world for maintenance and repair.
Aerospace customers include Lufthansa, Aero Norway, AJ Walter and Aer Lingus. The company also provides services to industry with clients including Alba Power and Electrabel.
TEAM was set up in 1995. It is owned and led by Pat McEvoy and Tom Gibbons who acquired the business in an MBO in 2017. The company employs 40 people.
In addition to the BGF investment, Nick Sanders, former Executive Chairman of Gardner Aerospace and former Co-Founder of Better Capital, will join the Board as Non-Executive Chairman. Michael Hickey, former COO of Ryanair plc will join the Board as a Non-Executive Director. Mark Sykes from BGF’s Dublin office will also join the Board as a Non-Executive Director.
Speaking today, Pat McEvoy and Tom Gibbons of TEAM said; “We are delighted to be partnering with BGF, who will bring significant value-add as well as capital. Together with BGF, we are excited to welcome Nick Sanders as Chairman and Michael Hickey as a Non-Executive Director, who will join Mark Sykes on a top-class board. We believe there is a clear opportunity to grow the business in the coming years with increasing job numbers and we look forward to implementing our plans in the months and years ahead.”
Leo Casey, Head of BGF in Ireland, said; “TEAM is a very attractive business with significant growth potential. Through the year to date we’ve invested in Irish businesses in areas as diverse as Healthcare, Construction and now Aerospace. There is no shortage of remarkable businesses in Ireland and the response to the BGF model of taking minority positions and providing patient capital to support existing shareholders and management teams has been exceptional. We look forward to investing in more ambitious Irish companies in the New Year.”
Beauchamps (legal), Navigo Consulting (financial due diligence) and Grant Thornton (tax) acted for BGF. TEAM was advised by PKF Corporate Finance and by Fieldfisher (legal).
Note to Editor:
This is the third investment by BGF in an Irish business this year and brings the total invested so far to circa €20 million.
In January of this year, the BGF team in Ireland announced their first investment which was in Brindley Healthcare (one of the country’s largest Nursing Home Groups). In March the team followed this up with an investment in a home building business called Winterbrook and today the company has completed the investment in TEAM.
In contrast to most private equity businesses, BGF only takes minority positions and aims to provide long-term support (known as patient capital) to existing management and shareholders to help them grow their businesses.
The investors in BGF in Ireland are the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund and the three major banks (AIB, Bank of Ireland and Ulster Bank). BGF is typically targeting equity investments of between €1 million and €10 million, with further funding available in subsequent rounds.
Issued on behalf of BGF by Gordon MRM