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SK Capital Exits IBA Molecular

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SK Capital has signed an agreement to sell IBA Molecular to CapVest Partners. SK Capital Partners acquired a 60% interest in IBA Molecular from Ion Beam Applications in April 2012. The transaction is expected to close at the end of Q1 2016.

IBA Molecular is a developer, manufacturer and distributor of radiopharmaceutical products that are used in positron emission tomography (PET) and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) molecular imaging procedures. The company also provides support services used in molecular imaging. IBA Molecular is headquartered in Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium and has over 50 locations in the US, Europe and Asia and employs over 1,000 people (www.iba-molecular.com).

Nuclear medicine uses very small amounts of radioactive materials (radiopharmaceuticals) to diagnose and treat disease. In imaging, the radiopharmaceuticals are detected by special types of cameras that work with computers to provide very precise pictures about the area of the body being imaged. In treatment, the radiopharmaceuticals go directly to the organ being treated. The amount of radiation in a typical nuclear imaging procedure is comparable with that received during a diagnostic x-ray, and the amount received in a typical treatment procedure is kept within safe limits.

“We are proud of what has been accomplished by IBA Molecular under our ownership and believe that the business has significant growth ahead under the continued leadership of Renaud Dehareng and his team,” said Jamshid Keynejad, Chairman of IBA Molecular and a Founding Partner of SK Capital. “We are confident that CapVest will be a strong partner for the company as it moves into the next stage of its development.”

CapVest is a European mid-market private equity firm. CapVest was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in London (www.capvest.co.uk).

SK Capital specializes in the specialty materials, chemicals and healthcare sectors and typically invests equity of $100 million to $200 million in each portfolio company. SK Capital’s portfolio companies generate revenues of approximately $8 billion annually and employ approximately 9,000 people. The firm currently manages more than $1.5 billion of committed capital and is based in New York (www.skcapitalpartners.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 12-14-15

Graham Sells Lab Equipment Maker to Harbour

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Graham Partners has sold SP Industries, a designer and manufacturer of scientific equipment and labware, to the Harbour Group. Graham Partners acquired SP Industries in March 2011 from Riverlake Partners.

SP Industries (SP) is a designer and manufacturer of laboratory equipment, pharmaceutical manufacturing products, laboratory supplies and instruments, and specialty glassware. SP’s products – the company has more than 20,000 SKUs – are sold to the pharmaceutical, scientific research, industrial, aeronautic, semiconductor and healthcare markets. The company’s brands are distributed globally under the Hull, VirTis, FTS, Genevac, Hotpack, Bel-Art, H-B Instrument and Wilmad-LabGlass brands. SP is headquartered in the Philadelphia suburb of Warminster, PA, and has 9 manufacturing facilities and 3 service centers in the US and in the UK (www.spindustries.com).

SP Industries is led by its William Downs, president and chief executive officer. “Graham’s operational background and expertise, coupled with its network of experienced industry professionals, has helped the company advance into a successful business poised for long-term growth,” said Mr. Downs.

During Graham’s term of ownership, SP’s EBITDA increased by 55%, driven by a combination of new products, two add-on acquisitions, and cost savings efforts such as the consolidation of operating facilities, renegotiating existing leases, and establishing lean manufacturing techniques. Several million dollars in annual cost savings were realized during Graham’s ownership.

The two add-on acquisitions were the buys of Bel-Art Products in July 2014 and Stability Environments in January 2015. Bel-Art is a maker of laboratory products such as safety wash bottles, fume hoods, thermometers, racks, and desiccators (www.belart.com) and Stability Environments makes walk-in environmental rooms, glassware dryers and accessory products (www.stabilityenv.com).

Graham Partners acquires companies with EBITDA between $5 million and $50 million, and will invest in smaller companies as add-on acquisitions to existing portfolio companies. The firm is sponsored by the Graham Group, an industrial and investment concern with interests in plastics, packaging, machinery, building products and outsourced manufacturing. Graham Partners was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in Philadelphia (www.grahampartners.net).

Harbour Group intends to accelerate SP’s new product development, geographical expansion and acquisitions programs. “SP’s brand strength, breadth of product and in-house manufacturing capabilities fit very well with our experience in the manufactured products sector,” said Jeff Fox, Harbour Group’s chairman and chief executive officer.

Harbour Group and its companies are engaged in manufacturing and distribution in multiple industries, including flow and energy measurement, boiler systems, professional diagnostic and repair tools, specialty LED systems, niche distribution, logistics services, decorative kitchen and bath hardware, abrasives, diamond-cutting products and related tools, entertainment and music products, and auxiliary plastic processing equipment.  Since its founding in 1976, Harbour Group has acquired 180 companies in 38 different industries. The firm is based in St. Louis (www.harbourgroup.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 12-11-15

Sverica Sells Bartech to Impellam

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Sverica Capital Management has sold the Bartech Group, a provider of outsourced management services, to Impellam Group. Sverica acquired a majority interest in Bartech in March 2012.

Bartech is a professional services firm that provides workforce management and staff augmentation services to Fortune 1000 companies and other large users of non-employee labor.  Bartech is among the top ten managed services providers in the world and manages or employs over 30,000 consultants daily across multiple end markets and manages over $3.5 billion of client expenditures.  Bartech is led by David Barfield, President and CEO. The company was founded in 1977 by John Barfield and is headquartered in the Detroit suburb of Southfield, MI (www.bartechgroup.com).

“My parents founded Bartech in 1977 and I’ve had the privilege to lead and reshape our company’s strategy, operations and culture since 2009,” said Mr. Barfield. “My team and I have enjoyed our partnership with Sverica. Their support of our team and vision to position Bartech to compete in the growing and evolving staffing industry has resulted in a better and stronger Bartech.”

Sverica invests in service oriented businesses and light industrial manufacturers. The firm targets companies with enterprise values under $100 million and EBITDAs greater than $3 million. Sverica was founded in 1993 and has raised over $500 million of capital across multiple funds.  The firm has offices in Boston and San Francisco (www.sverica.com).

“It is tough letting go of a great company like Bartech, but together with the leadership of David and his management team, we have grown the company over the last three and a half years into an asset that is well positioned to now go to the next level leading Impellam’s North American contingent labor strategy,” said Dave Finley, Managing Director at Sverica.

Impellam Group is the 2nd largest staffing business in the UK and the 12th worldwide. The company operates across the UK, North America, Asia Pacific, and mainland Europe. Impellam Group is publicly traded (LON: IPEL) and is headquartered north of London in Luton, UK (www.impellam.com).

“It has been a pleasure partnering with David and his team to build an industry leading company in the human capital management industry,” said Jordan Richards, Managing Director at Sverica. “It is gratifying to see all of the hard work not only translate into strong revenue and EBITDA growth over our investment period, but also the recognition by our clients and industry peers for the high quality of service Bartech provides.”

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 12-11-15

TorQuest Sells Array Marketing

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TorQuest Partners has completed the sale of their majority interest in Array Marketing to The Carlyle Group. TorQuest and its co-investors acquired Array in June 2012.

Array is a provider of visual merchandising products and services to high-end cosmetic brands. The company provides design conceptualization and development, engineering, procurement, and production of retail displays and store fixtures. Array Marketing is based in Toronto (www.arraymarketing.com).

Array has been an outstanding investment for TorQuest and our partners, and we are grateful to Array’s management team for its dedication to the company and excellent work over our hold period,” said Michael Hollend, a Partner at TorQuest. “Array’s success over the past three and a half years is the result of the company’s commitment to market leadership and product design, and the hard work of its many talented employees.”

TorQuest makes equity investments of C$15 million to C$100 million in companies with enterprise values of C$40 million to C$250 million that are located in Canada and the US.  The firm invests in a range of industries but has particular interests in manufacturing, business services, financial services, food, consumer products and specialty chemicals. TorQuest was founded in 2002 and has over C$1 billion of equity capital under management. The firm is headquartered in Toronto (www.torquest.com).

“TorQuest has been an ideal partner for us,” said Tom Hendren, CEO of Array. “Their commitment to investing in our business and our people has provided Array with a solid platform for continued growth and success.”

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 12-11-15

Halyard Capital Exits EducationDynamics

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Halyard Capital has sold its portfolio company, EducationDynamics, to an investor group led by Muirlands Capital, KnowledgeShares and Prudential Capital Group.  Halyard will continue to be a minority investor in the company.

EducationDynamics (EDDY) is a provider of student recruitment and retention services to colleges and universities. The company’s services are used to manage a school’s relationship with students from initial search to inquiry, from inquiry to application, from acceptance to enrollment, and from enrollment through retention. EDDY provides its services to more than 900 clients through a network of web properties including eLearners.com, GradSchools.com, EducationConnection.com, and StudyAbroad.com. EDDY is headquartered in Hoboken, NJ with additional offices in Boca Raton, FL and Newtown Square, PA (www.educationdynamics.com).

“We are extremely pleased to have worked with the management team at EDDY to build one of the leading businesses focused on helping colleges find and retain the highest quality students,” said Bruce Eatroff, Founding Partner of Halyard Capital.

Halyard specializes in middle-market leveraged buyouts and growth equity investments in technology-enabled information, data analytics, communications and business services companies that cater to the healthcare, education, marketing services, human capital management and media sectors.  The firm has over $600 million of capital under management and is based in New York (www.halyard.com).

The sale of EducationDynamics is the fourth significant liquidity event from Halyard Capital Fund II, following the sale of Engauge to Publicis in August 2013, the partial monetization of OneSource Virtual HR to Technology Crossover Ventures in June 2015 and the sale of Datamyx to Deluxe Corporation in October 2015.

“Halyard Capital has been an outstanding financial and strategic partner and was the original architect behind the EducationDynamics strategy,” said Bruce Douglas, the CEO of EDDY.  “We are extremely pleased that three prominent, experienced investors – Muirlands, KnowledgeShares and Prudential – are committed to taking our business to the next level.”

Muirlands Capital is a lower middle market firm that invests in growth-oriented businesses across a range of industries.  The firm was formed in 2014 by Richard Lobo who had previously spent over 20 years at Chicago-based CHS Capital.

KnowledgeShares is a public-private partnership that invests financial and human capital to help grow colleges, universities, businesses, and not-for- profit institutions. The organization is based near Cleveland in Westlake, OH (www.KnowledgeShares.org).

Prudential Capital Group invests senior debt, mezzanine and equity and currently manages a portfolio of investments aggregating to nearly $74 billion. The firm has offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Frankfurt, London, Los Angeles, Milan, Minneapolis, Newark, New York, Paris and San Francisco (www.prudentialcapitalgroup.com).

Lazard Middle Market (www.lazardmm.com) was the financial advisor to EDDY and Halyard Capital.

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 12-11-15

Lee Sells PDR Network to Genstar

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Lee Equity Partners has sold PDR Network – a distributor of drug labeling information for regulatory and compliance purposes – to Genstar Capital.

PDR Network was created by Lee Equity in 2009 when it capitalized the company and merged two corporate carve outs – Physician’s Desk Reference and Healthcare Notification Network – and subsequently acquired LDM Group in 2014. Through these acquisitions and the launch of new products, the company transitioned from a legacy print-based platform to a digital information services network. PDR Network is led by Mark Heinold, Chief Executive Officer, and is based in Montvale, NJ (www.pdrnetwork.com).

According to the company, The Physicians’ Desk Reference suite of services is the most-recognized drug information reference in the US—available in the a classic print edition, on PDR.net, via mobilePDR, as well as through prescriber workflow in eRx, EMR, and EHR applications.

“Under Mark Heinold’s leadership, the business has transformed into a high-growth healthcare information services company. The company’s strong competitive position and growth trajectory provides a solid foundation for the company’s next stage of development,” said Dave Morrison, Partner at Lee Equity.

Lee Equity Partners focuses on control buyouts and growth capital financings, typically investing $50 million to $150 million of equity per transaction. Target companies have enterprise values of $100 million to $500 million and are located in the United States. Sectors of interest include financial; healthcare and business services; retail and consumer products; media; and industrial. The firm is based in New York (www.leeequity.com).

“Lee Equity provided tremendous strategic, operational and financial support as we integrated add-on acquisitions and created a technology enabled communications network for the pharmaceutical industry,” said Mr. Heinold. “We appreciate their partnership and are excited about the resulting opportunities ahead.”

Piper Jaffray (www.piperjaffray.com) was the financial advisor to PDR Network.

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 12-8-15