April 18, 2013
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Archives for April 18, 2013

Riverside Acquires TerraSim

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Bohemia Interactive Simulations, a portfolio company of The Riverside Company, has acquired TerraSim, a provider of terrain generation software.

“TerraSim builds the world’s best terrain generation software. This acquisition accelerates Bohemia’s technical capabilities and should open new opportunities for the company,” said Riverside Partner Dr. Martin Scott, who leads Riverside’s Software and IT specialization in Europe. Working with Dr. Scott on the acquisition of TerraSim were Principal Adam Pietruszkiewicz, Vice President Ludek Palata and Vice President Marcin Goszyk.

TerraSim is a provider of terrain generation software that is used for the rapid production of 3D visualizations from heterogeneous user data. TerraSim’s software products are used in three major market segments: defense modeling and simulation; site modeling and intelligence database preparation; and civil applications including city and regional planning. The company was founded in 1996 by four members of the Digital Mapping Laboratory from the Computer Science Department at Carnegie Mellon University. TerraSim is based in Pittsburgh (www.terrasim.com).

A desert village imaged using TerraSim software

Bohemia Interactive plans to retain operations at TerraSim’s Pittsburgh office, using existing software and database engineers and leadership, while integrating the companies and capitalizing on the enhanced software capabilities for Bohemia’s products and services.

Bohemia Interactive Simulations, acquired by Riverside in December 2012, is a developer and provider of games for training technology and interactive simulation systems sold to defense, emergency and mission-critical customers. Bohemia supplies the U.S. Department of Defense, UK Ministry of Defense, Australian Defense Force and a range of other international clients. Bohemia’s flagship product, Virtual Battle Space 2 is the de-facto industry standard within its segment. The company was founded in 2001 and has offices in Orlando, FL; Prague, Czech Republic; Hampshire, UK; and Nelson Bay, Australia (www.bisimulations.com).

“We were considering acquiring TerraSim even before the Riverside acquisition,” said Bohemia CEO Pete Morrison. “They’re an exceptional company that brings outstanding technical knowhow. This immediately makes Bohemia a stronger and more capable company.”

The Riverside Company is a private equity firm focused on the smaller end of the middle market (“SEMM”). Riverside specializes in investing in SEMM companies (those valued up to $250 million) and partners with management teams to build companies through acquisitions and value-added growth. Since 1988, the firm has invested in more than 300 transactions with a total enterprise value of more than $6 billion. The firm’s current portfolio includes more than 75 companies. The Riverside Company is headquartered in New York with additional offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and London (www.riversidecompany.com).

© 2013 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 4-18-13

Paine & Partners Acquires Plant Syence

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Verdesian Life Sciences, a portfolio company of Paine & Partners, has acquired all of the assets of Plant Syence Ltd. and its affiliates. With the closing of the acquisition, Plant Syence will immediately begin conducting business as Verdesian Life Sciences Europe, Ltd.

Plant Syence is a research based supplier of products to the agriculture, horticulture and amenity markets. The company has also acted as a manufacturer’s representative for Verdesian in the United Kingdom and continental Europe for the last 11 years. Plant Syence is based in East Yorkshire, UK (www.plantsyence.com).

“Verdesian is committed to product development and enhancing our portfolio through acquisition of companies and technologies. The acquisition of Plant Syence is an important step in Verdesian’s growth strategy,” said JJ Grow, Chief Executive Officer of Verdesian Life Sciences.

In September 2012, Paine & Partners created Verdesian Life Sciences as a platform to focus on investments in plant health and nutrition. Simultaneous with the formation of Verdesian, the company completed its first acquisition with the purchase of Biagro Western Sales, which focuses on technologies used to develop plant health and plant nutrition products in agricultural markets globally. Biagro Western is based in Visalia, CA (www.biagro.com).

Paine & Partners provides equity capital for management buyouts, going private transactions, and company expansion and growth programs. The firm, with $1.2 billion of capital under management, has offices in San Mateo, CA; New York, NY and Chicago, IL (www.painepartners.com).

© 2013 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 4-18-13

Wynnchurch Forms New Executive Advisory Board

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Wynnchurch Capital has formed the Wynnchurch Executive Advisory Board and has named Jim Goodwin, former Chairman and CEO of UAL Corporation, as its first member. Wynnchurch will be naming three additional members to the Board in the coming weeks.

In addition to his position on the Executive Advisory Board, Mr. Goodwin has joined the Boards of Directors of Wynnchurch portfolio companies Burtek Enterprises and Northstar Aerospace.

“The intent of the Executive Advisory Board is to assist Wynnchurch and our portfolio companies in better understanding targeted industries and markets, and developing applicable growth strategies,” said John Hatherly, Founding Partner of Wynnchurch. “Additionally, some of the executives joining the Executive Advisory Board will serve on boards of directors of certain portfolio companies, bringing thought leadership, independent perspectives and support for our CEOs.”

Mr. Goodwin, former Chairman and CEO of UAL Corporation and United Airlines, joined the Executive Advisory Board in early 2013. He is currently the Non-Executive Chairman of the Board of Federal Signal Corporation and serves on the Boards of Directors of AAR Corp and JB Technologies, as well as the Board of Trustees of Lewis University.

“We are absolutely thrilled to have Jim as a member of the Wynnchurch team. His tenure at United Airlines complements our focus on the transportation and aerospace industries. His leadership experience spans all facets of the airline industry ranging from branding and pricing, to operations, safety and customer service, bringing a well-rounded perspective to our management teams operating in this sector,” said Terry Theodore, Partner of Wynnchurch.

Wynnchurch Capital makes investments of $10 million to $90 million in middle-market companies that have revenues of $5 million to $500 million. Sectors of interest include niche manufacturing, transportation & logistics, business services, value-added distribution, energy and power services, general industrials, and metals & mining. Wynnchurch Capital is located in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont with additional offices Dallas, Detroit, and Toronto (www.wynnchurch.com).

© 2013 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 4-18-13

The Pritzker Group Names Five Senior Advisors to Its Operations Team

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The Pritzker Group has added five industry executives to serve as senior advisors to the firm.

“Our senior advisors offer expertise and perspective to our company management teams and The Pritzker Group as part of our commitment to operational excellence. Their counsel will help our companies create and execute strategies that achieve world-class operations, products and services for our customers,” said Paul Carbone, Managing Partner of Private Equity for The Pritzker Group.

The Pritzker Group has been ramping up its middle-market investment activities since the Group hired Paul Carbone, who formerly built and led the Private Equity Group for Robert W. Baird and Co., as its Managing Partner of Private Equity in February 2012. In January 2013, The Pritzker Group hired Michael Nelson, former managing director of Wind Point Partners, as a new Partner to lead its investments in manufactured products.

The five new senior advisors are as follows:

  • Christopher Doerr is co-CEO of Sterling Aviation Holdings and previously led Karl’s Event Services and LEESON Electric. Mr. Doerr is currently a director of Roadrunner Transportation Systems and Regal Beloit. He also provides strategic counsel to Signicast, a provider of investment castings.
  • Stephen Fraser has served in a variety of senior management positions for private and publicly-traded companies, including Horizon Lines and GENCO. Mr. Fraser is a professional independent board member and provides advisory services to companies. He serves as a senior advisor to PECO Pallet, a pallet rental services and logistics company.
  • John Pedersen is a former senior vice president of Boston Scientific and senior engagement manager of McKinsey & Co. Mr. Pedersen is a senior advisor to Clinical Innovations, a women’s health medical device business focused on improving efficiency and outcomes during labor and delivery.
  • John Prann, Jr., is currently a director of Corrections Corporation of America and formerly served as president and CEO of Katy Industries. A former Deloitte & Touche partner, Mr. Prann is senior advisor to Impact Products, which manufactures and supplies branded and private label non-chemical commercial cleaning and maintenance products.
  • Paul Reilly is a serial entrepreneur who founded and sold several businesses, including Paul Reilly Company of Illinois, Rytec Corporation and R-Bac Industries. Mr. Reilly also has served as the top executive of Encore Discovery Solutions, D-Vision Systems and Orbit Commerce. He was named senior advisor to Intersystems International, which designs and manufactures specialized material handling equipment serving the agriculture industry.

The Pritzker Group’s middle-market investment team acquires North American-based companies with enterprise values between $100 million and $500 million and EBITDAs in excess of $15 million. Sectors of interest include manufactured products, healthcare, and services. The Pritzker Group is based in Chicago (www.pritzkergroup.com).

© 2013 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 4-18-13

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