Arsenal Capital Partners has hired David Spaight as an Operating Partner within the firm’s Healthcare Group. Earlier this week, Arsenal Capital Partners held a final close of Arsenal Capital Fund IV LP at its $1.3 billion hard cap. The firm’s previous fund, Arsenal Capital Partners III LP, was raised in 2012 with $875 million of committed capital.
Mr. Spaight was most recently Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of contract research organization WIL Research Company. In April 2016, Mr. Spaight led the $585 million sale of WIL Research to publicly-traded Charles River Laboratories (NYSE: CRL). Prior to his time at WIL Research, which began in 2010, Mr. Spaight held numerous senior executive positions at a number of biopharma services and life sciences companies including MDS Pharma Services, ThermoFisher, and PerkinElmer. Mr. Spaight received his MBA and a BS in Chemistry from the University of Michigan.
“This is a uniquely exciting and important time to be working within the healthcare industry,” said Mr. Spaight. “Significant opportunities exist to improve the efficacy of patient care by improving the workflow of pharmaceutical research and development and provider operations. Our team and our Arsenal portfolio companies are committed to this important work. I joined Arsenal with a shared enthusiasm for these endeavors.”
Arsenal invests in middle-market specialty industrial and healthcare companies that have $50 million to $250 million in enterprise value. Industries of specific interest include specialty and fine chemicals; healthcare; transportation and logistics; power generation; aerospace and defense; and process industry components and services. The firm has offices in New York and Shanghai (www.arsenalcapital.com).
“Arsenal has an established track record of building world-class businesses that drive process improvements in key sectors of healthcare. In particular, we have made a number of investments in businesses that help improve the safety and productivity of pharmaceutical and biotechnology research and development. We are confident David will make a major contribution to this important mission,” said Stephen McLean, Arsenal Partner and co-Head of Arsenal’s Healthcare Group.
© 2016 Private Equity Professional • 10-20-16
