September 15, 2015
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Archives for September 15, 2015

NOVACAP Acquires Nitrex Metal

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nitrex nf1NOVACAP has acquired a majority equity interest in Nitrex Metal, a provider of metal heat treatment equipment and services.

Nitrex Metal is a maker of systems used to heat treat ferrous or non-ferrous materials through gas nitriding and gas nitrocarburizing (both are thermochemical processes where nitrogen, carbon, and oxygen atoms are diffused into the surface of a steel part to form a compound layer that improves hardness and other performance attributes). Nitrex has been growing consistently over the last several years and has annual revenues of approximately $60 million.  The company was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Quebec.  Nitrex Metal has approximately 300 employees and has operations in Canada, the United States, Poland, Germany, France, Italy, China, Brazil, Japan and Mexico (www.nitrex.com).

Michel Korwin, the founder of Nitrex, and Chris Morawski, head of US operations and international services, will remain with the company under NOVACAP ownership and both will maintain a significant equity stake in the company.

Stephane Tremblay nf1“NOVACAP is excited to be joining forces with Nitrex to help the company find new market opportunities and get to the next level,” said Stéphane Tremblay, Senior Partner at NOVACAP. “Nitrex has already proven itself through its time-tested relationships with customers in an array of industries. We’re impressed by their track record and look forward to partnering with them to execute their aggressive growth plan in the fast-growing metallic surface nitriding sector.”

Novacap, with $1.5 billion in assets under management, invests in middle market companies within traditional industries and in companies in the information and communication technologies sector.  The firm was founded in 1981 and is based in Quebec (www.novacap.ca).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-15-15

Blue Heron Invests in TRICAST

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tricast nf1Blue Heron Capital has made an investment in TRICAST, a provider of pharmacy software used for data monitoring and analytics.

TRICAST’s services – marketed under the brand name Reveal – are used by pharmacies to comply with Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regulations and to generate data that can be used to lower costs through reduction of fraud, waste and abuse.  TRICAST is headquartered in Milwaukee (www.tricast.com).

Greg Rucinski nf1This investment will be used by TRICAST to develop new modules for the company’s SaaS software platform and to expand the sales and on-boarding (employee education and training) function to drive additional growth.  “This is an exciting next step in the evolution of TRICAST,” said CEO Greg Rucinski. “The support of our investors will enable us to increase our pace of growth, accelerate our development efforts and devote more resources to providing an outstanding customer experience.”

Blue Heron Capital makes growth and buyout investments in lower middle market companies. Sectors of interest include healthcare; IT and physical security; and business services. The firm is based in Richmond, VA (www.blueheroncap.com).

Andrew Tichenor nf2“We are seeing a historic change in healthcare and believe costs must be contained,” said Andrew Tichenor, a Partner at Blue Heron Capital.  “Through our operational expertise, Blue Heron Capital looks forward to helping TRICAST identify and remedy the significant fraud and waste that occurs in the pharmacy benefit space.”

Brook Venture Partners, based north of Boston in Wakefield, MA, co-invested with Blue Heron on this investment (www.brookventure.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-15-15

Nautic Exits Theorem Clinical Research

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theorem nf1Nautic Partners has completed the sale of Theorem Clinical Research to Chiltern International, a UK-based contract research organization.

Theorem Clinical Research is a full-service contract research organization (CRO) that conducts early phase, Phase II/III and late phase clinical trials for pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device and diagnostic customers. The company is based in King of Prussia, PA, and has more than 1,500 employees in 30 countries across North America, Asia-Pacific, Europe and Latin America (www.theoremclinical.com).

Chris Crosby nf1Nautic Partners acquired Theorem Clinical Research (then named Omnicare Clinical Research) in April 2011 from healthcare giant Omnicare.  “We are very fortunate to have partnered with the outstanding management team at Theorem,” said Chris Crosby, managing director of Nautic. “During our ownership period, the company grew its revenue by approximately 18 percent per annum by repositioning itself with a greater focus on small- and medium-sized pharma and biopharma companies. This portion of the market is underserved by the larger CROs, and Theorem’s focus on this segment helped drive the company’s expansion.  The revenue growth paired with the management team’s operational improvements also drove increases in profitability during our ownership period.”

Nautic Partners is a middle-market private equity firm with over $3 billion of equity capital under management. Nautic targets majority equity investments of $25 million to $75 million. Sectors of interest include business services, manufacturing, and healthcare. The firm was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Providence, RI (www.nautic.com).

John Potthoff nf1“Speaking on behalf of the senior management team, we greatly enjoyed our time working with Nautic,” said John Potthoff, chief executive officer and president of Theorem. “Nautic’s strategic guidance and disciplined approach allowed us to establish our leadership position in our target market niche.”

Chiltern International is a privately held contract research organization with 3,700 employees in 47 countries. The company was founded in 1982 and is based west of London in Berkshire, UK (www.Chiltern.com).

Robert W. Baird & Co. (www.rwbaird.com) served as financial advisor to Theorem, while Goodwin Procter (www.goodwinprocter.com) acted as legal counsel.

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-15-15

TVV Capital Acquires Ian-Conrad Bergan

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bergan nf1TVV Capital has acquired Ian-Conrad Bergan (ICB), a provider of sensors that are used to monitor marine storage tanks. This is the sixth investment made by TVV’s third and most recent fund.

bergan nf2Ian-Conrad Bergan is a developer, manufacturer and distributor of sensors, electronics, and software for the monitoring and gauging of marine liquid storage tanks.  ICB’s sensors are usable with virtually any liquid including water, fuel, petroleum products and other liquid chemicals.  They can also handle pressurized liquids like liquid natural gas and high-temperature liquids such as asphalt. Monitoring products range from simple visual gauges to radar and magnetic level sensors.  The company staff includes in-house engineering and mechanical, electrical and software engineers focused on product development and customer support. ICB was founded in Norway in 1975 and today is based in Pensacola, FL (www.bergan-blue.com).

Andrew Byrd nf1“The acquisition of ICB highlights TVV’s focus on acquiring niche companies with proprietary products, a strong management team and solid growth opportunities,” said Andrew Byrd, President of TVV Capital. “ICB’s products and solutions enjoy a strong market share for inland tank barge sensors and coast-hugging articulated tug-barges.

TVV Capital is a lower middle-market buyout firm focused on acquiring market-leading niche companies across a range of industries.  The firm targets companies with enterprise values from $10 million to $100 million, revenues from $15 million to $150 million, and EBITDA margins of 10 to 25 percent.  TVV Capital was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Nashville (www.tvvcapital.com).

Accounting services were provided to TVV Capital by Nashville-based DGLF CPAs and Business Advisors (www.dglfcpa.com). Legal advisory for TVV Capital were provided by Bass, Berry & Sims, also based in Nashville (www.bassberry.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-15-15

BGL Adds New Director of Sponsor Coverage

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BGL nf5Brown Gibbons Lang & Company (BGL) has hired E. Robert (Bob) Kent III as a managing director to lead the firm’s coverage of private equity firms.  He will be based in the firm’s Cleveland office.

E Robert (Bob) Kent III nf1Mr. Kent comes to BGL from Stifel Investment Banking where he served as a managing director in the firm’s Financial Sponsors Group.  He has also held various positions in investment banking at Banc of America Securities and at Brown Brothers Harriman.  Mr. Kent earned his MBA from the University of Virginia and has an AB in Economics from Princeton.

BGL has been active recently in adding staff.  Earlier this month, BGL added another senior professional with the hiring of Vincent Pappalardo as a managing director.  Mr. Pappalardo is responsible for leading BGL’s metals industry practice.  Also recently joining BGL are Justin Wolfort as a director; David Sastre as an associate; Alma K. (Katie) Mazur as an associate; Anthony Naticchionias as a managing director; and Ryan Butler as an analyst.

BGL is a mid-market investment bank that specializes in mergers and acquisitions advisory services, debt and equity placements, financial restructuring advice, and valuations and fairness opinions. The firm has industry teams that are active in consumer products & retail services; energy & environmental services; healthcare & life sciences; human capital management outsourcing; industrials; and real estate.  BGL was founded in 1989 and has offices in Chicago and Cleveland and real estate offices in Irvine and San Antonio (www.bglco.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-15-15

CIT Healthcare Backs PharmaLogic Add-on

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CIT nf1CIT Healthcare Finance was the Sole Lead Arranger and Administrative Agent on a $26.5 million senior secured credit facility to support the recapitalization of PharmaLogic and the add-acquisition of Clinical Pharmacy Services by Webster Capital.

PharmaLogic – acquired by Webster Capital and MedEquity Capital in March 2015 – is a nuclear pharmacy company with 12 locations in the Northeast and Western United States. Nuclear pharmacies provide compounding and dispensing of radioactive materials for use in nuclear medicine procedures.  The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Boca Raton (www.pharmalogic.info).

Clinical Pharmacy Services (CPS) is a nuclear pharmacy that provides products and services to outpatient diagnostic imaging centers and hospitals with nuclear medicine imaging capabilities.  CPS also provides mobile PET/CT imaging services.  The company was founded in 1990 and is headquartered northeast of Knoxville in Gray, TN (www.clinicalpharmacyservices.com).

William Douglass nf5“Webster Capital has a strong reputation for successful healthcare investments and the combination of PharmaLogic and CPS is evidence of this track record. We are pleased to have arranged this financing and to put our healthcare knowledge and experience to work for these two companies,” said William Douglass, Group Head and Managing Director of CIT Healthcare Finance.

CIT Corporate Finance provides lending, leasing and other financial and advisory services to the small business and middle market sectors with a focus on specific industries, including: chemicals, commercial real estate, communications, energy, entertainment, gaming, healthcare, industrials, information services & technology, restaurants, retail, and sports & media (www.cit.com/corporatefinance). The corporate finance group is part of CIT, a bank holding company with more than $65 billion in assets. CIT was founded in 1908 and is based in New York (www.cit.com).

“The CIT Capital Markets team was diligent in their efforts to bring together this financing for Webster Capital,” said David Malm, Co-Managing Partner of Webster Capital.

Webster Capital invests in branded consumer, business- to-business, and healthcare services companies with revenues of $20 million to $100 million and EBITDAs from $2 million to $15 million. Transaction values typically range from $30 million to $100 million. The firm was founded in 2003 and is based in Waltham, MA (www.webstercapital.com).

Webster’s co-investment partner on this transaction was MedEquity Capital. The firm invests in healthcare businesses that have revenues of $3 million to $15 million and EBITDA of $0.5 million to $2.5 million.  MedEquity is based west of Boston in Wellesley Hills, MA (www.medequity.com).

“We’re pleased to have secured this financing from CIT Healthcare Finance which allows us to expand our market footprint to 13 states with CPS complementing our service offering through the addition of mobile PET/CT imaging and PET isotope production capabilities,” said Steven Chilinski, President and Chief Executive Officer of PharmaLogic.

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-15-15

Blue Point Adds Three, Lisa Root Retires after 23 Years

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bluepoint nf8Blue Point Capital Partners has added three new members to its team with the hirings of Colleen Greenrod as chief administrative officer; Jonathan Pressnell as a principal; and Sonali Aggarwal as an associate.

Ms. Greenrod succeeds Lisa Root, who is retiring after more than two decades with Blue Point.  Ms. Greenrod has more than 15 years of experience in the financial services industry. Previously, she was with JPMorgan, where she worked for One Equity Partners and its private equity fund administration group in Chicago. Prior to JPMorgan, Ms. Greenrod worked for Citadel Investment Group, and she began her career as an auditor with Arthur Andersen.

“Colleen brings a strong skill set to the table and we are excited to welcome her to the group,” said Sean Ward, a partner with Blue Point. “She will be charged with overseeing all Blue Point finance, compliance and administrative functions, and we look forward to building on our strong operational foundation under her leadership.”

lisa root nf1Ms. Root will be retiring after 23 years working with the team at Blue Point and over 33 years in finance and private equity. “Lisa has been a valuable member of the group since 1992, handling all of Blue Point’s general and limited partnership accounting and reporting, as well as doing a great job overseeing the back office operations of the fund,” said Chip Chaikin, a partner with Blue Point. “She has been with the group from its very beginnings – we thank Lisa for her many years of outstanding service and wish her a happy retirement.”

Jonathan Pressnell is returning to Blue Point as a principal after previously working for the firm for three years as an associate.  Most recently, he was a principal at Greenbriar Equity Group, and his history includes working as an analyst for KeyBanc Capital Markets and as an auditor at Ernst & Young.  Mr. Pressnell has a BSBA in accounting from the University of Pittsburgh, an MS in accountancy from the University of Notre Dame and an MBA from Dartmouth College.

Ms. Aggarwal was previously an associate in the private equity division at Fortress Investment Group in New York. Prior to joining Fortress, she was an analyst in the investment banking group at UBS.  She has a BS in finance and international business from New York University.

“We are pleased to welcome back Jon and bring Sonali onboard. They are both excellent additions to our team and we look forward to their many contributions in sourcing, reviewing and managing investments,” said John LeMay, a partner with Blue Point.

Blue Point Capital Partners is a lower-middle-market private equity firm that invests in manufacturing, distribution and service businesses generating $20 million to $200 million in revenue. The firm has over $800 million in committed capital and has offices in Charlotte, Cleveland, Seattle, and Shanghai (www.bluepointcapital.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-15-15

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