government services

Court Square to Sell Wyle

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Publicly-traded KBR, Inc. has entered into an agreement to acquire Wyle, a portfolio company of Court Square Capital Partners, for $570 million in cash. Court Square acquired Wyle in June 2009 from Littlejohn & Co. which had acquired the company in 2003.

Wyle is a provider of engineering, professional, scientific and technical services primarily to the US federal government including the Department of Defense and NASA.  Specific services provided by Wyle include systems engineering, life science research, space medical operations, information technology, and testing and evaluation of aircraft. Wyle has approximately 4,000 employees and annual revenues of $900 million. As of year-end 2015, Wyle’s funded backlog was $440 million with an additional $1.1 billion of orders not yet funded, but expected. The company was founded in 1949 by Frank Wyle and is headquartered in El Segundo, CA (www.wyle.com).

The $570 million purchase price for Wyle will be funded by availability under an existing KBR line of credit and approximately $200 million in cash. The transaction is expected to close by September 2016.

KBR is an engineering, procurement, and construction company with annual revenues of approximately $7 billion. The company is a former a subsidiary of Halliburton and was previously known as Kellogg Brown & Root. KBR is headquartered in Houston (www.kbr.com).

Wyle will become a KBR business unit within KBR’s Government Services segment. According to KBR the acquisition will combine KBR’s strengths in international, large-scale government logistics and support operations with Wyle’s specialized technical services, which are largely focused in the US.

“Adding Wyle’s highly specialized and differentiated offerings to our global government services portfolio improves KBR’s overall risk profile by expanding into other government funding sources for higher-margin and largely cost-reimbursable work,” said Stuart Bradie, President and CEO of KBR. “The acquisition is expected to be accretive in the first year and provide longer term synergistic opportunities in markets where KBR’s large-scale logistics and project management capabilities combine with Wyle’s specialized technical capabilities.”

Court Square Capital Partners invests in middle market companies that are active in the business services, general industrials, healthcare, and technology/telecommunications sectors. Court Square currently manages approximately $5 billion of capital and is based in New York (www.courtsquare.com).

© 2016 Private Equity Professional • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 5-24-16

Riverside Adds-on to SAFEbuilt

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The Riverside Company has completed its first add-on acquisition for its portfolio company SAFEbuilt with the buy of Independent Inspections.

Independent Inspections provides outsourced building department services for local governments in over 130 communities in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Florida.  The company was founded in 1979 and is headquartered near Milwaukee in Waukesha, WI (www.independentinspections.com).

SAFEbuilt, acquired by Riverside in October 2014, offers a suite of services that include building department programs, planning and zoning, code enforcement and other administrative functions. Its affiliate company, Meritage Systems, provides workflow and operational support software for municipal building departments. SAFEbuilt was founded in 1992 and is based in Loveland, CO (www.safebuilt.com).

“Independent Inspections provides very similar services to SAFEbuilt, and the addition opens new markets in Florida and Wisconsin,” said Riverside Managing Partner Loren Schlachet. “We’re pleased to be adding to SAFEbuilt’s already robust footprint.”

With the buy of Independent Inspections, SAFEbuilt now serves over 300 communities across the US and is a leading provider of building department services in Colorado, Georgia and Michigan. Within the last two years, SAFEbuilt has also expanded its presence into South Carolina, Ohio and Illinois as well as introducing two new service lines – planning and zoning, and code enforcement services.

“SAFEbuilt delivers effective and efficient outsourced services for communities that appreciate its highly capable staff and lower costs,” said Riverside Vice President Brad Resnick. “We’re looking forward to continuing our growth plan for the company.”

Working with Mr. Schlachet and Mr. Resnick on the transaction for Riverside was Senior Associate Kevin Kumar and Operating Partner Bill White.

MidCap Financial (www.midcapfinancial.com) – which provided the original debt for the SAFEbuilt acquisition in October 2014 – provided debt financing for this add-on acquisition.

The Riverside Company is a global private equity firm focused on investing in and acquiring growing businesses valued at up to $300 million (€200 million in Europe). Since its founding in 1988, Riverside has invested in more than 380 transactions. The firm’s international portfolio includes more than 70 companies. Riverside is headquartered in New York with additional offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and London (www.riversidecompany.com).

2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 5-18-15

Riverside Acquires SAFEbuilt

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The Riverside Company has acquired SAFEbuilt, a provider of community development services for local governments and public agencies.

SAFEbuilt offers a suite of services that include building department programs, planning and zoning, code enforcement and other administrative functions. Its affiliate company, Meritage Systems, provides workflow and operational support software for municipal building departments. SAFEbuilt was founded in 1992 and is based in Loveland, CO (www.safebuilt.com).

“SAFEbuilt has tremendous growth potential thanks to its compelling value proposition,” said Riverside Managing Partner Loren Schlachet. “Clients choose SAFEbuilt because of its great service, but also because the model greatly reduces the risk of running a bureaucratic department at a deficit.”

Today SAFEbuilt serves over 200 communities across the US and is the leading provider of building department services in Colorado, Georgia and Michigan. Within the last two years, SAFEbuilt has also expanded its presence into South Carolina, Ohio and Illinois as well as introducing two new service lines – planning and zoning, and code enforcement services.

Working with Mr. Schlachet on the transaction for Riverside was Vice President Brad Resnick, Senior Associate Kevin Kumar and Operating Partner Bill White. Origination Principal Scott Gilbertson sourced the transaction for Riverside.  Dave Kralic served as Finance Director for Riverside, and Vice President Dan Haynes worked on financing the transaction for the firm.

The Riverside Company is a global private equity firm focused on investing in and acquiring growing businesses valued at up to $250 million (€200 million in Europe). Since its founding in 1988, Riverside has invested in more than 360 transactions. The firm’s international portfolio includes more than 75 companies. Riverside is headquartered in New York with additional offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and London (www.riversidecompany.com).

MidCap Financial (www.midcapfinancial.com) provided financing for the transaction.

2014 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 11-13-14