ALTAMIR : Altamir invests* in SK FireSafety Group, the fire safety specialist in northern Europe

information fournie par Actusnews •20/06/2014 à 09:30

Paris, 20th June 2014 - Funds managed by Apax Partners MidMarket (France) have announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire SK FireSafety, a Northern European leader in fire safety, from individual shareholders, Scheybeek Investments and Bencis Capital Partners. The closing of the transaction is expected before the end of July.

SK FireSafety Group specializes in three areas:

• Sale and maintenance of fire protection products (fire extinguishers, hose reels, evacuation route signaling, emergency lighting);
• Design and installation of fire detection and suppression systems and equipment for use in critical environments in industry, infrastructure, IT and the Oil & Gas business;
• Maintenance of cabin safety equipment specific to the aviation sector (fire extinguishers, oxygen masks, life rafts).

SK FireSafety Group is based in the Netherlands and operates in Belgium, the United Kingdom, Norway and the United Arab Emirates. In 2013 the group had turnover of more than €100 million and 650 employees.

With the support of Apax Partners, SK FireSafety Group aims to continue its international expansion, to strengthen the sharing of know-how between the different group entities, and to increase its leadership in its traditional markets.

SK FireSafety Group has grown significantly over the last three years, with turnover increasing from €40 million in 2011 to €100 million in 2013. Apax Partners and the company's management team have as their objective to establish SK FireSafety Group as an undisputed leader in Europe. Apax will provide the company with strategic support as well as the human and financial resources to enable SK FireSafety Group to achieve this target.
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* Through funds managed by Apax Partners MidMarket.

About Altamir
Altamir is a listed private equity company with €550 million in assets under management. The objective of Altamir is to grow its net asset value (NAV) per share and to outperform the most relevant indices (CAC Mid & Small, and LPX Europe).
Altamir invests via the funds managed by Apax Partners France, a leading private equity firm in French-speaking Europe, and via Apax Partners LLP, one of the world's leading private equity investment groups. Both firms target buyout and growth capital investments in which they are majority shareholders or lead investors, and help management teams to implement ambitious value creation plans.

Altamir provides access to a diversified portfolio of fast-growing companies across Apax's sectors of specialization: Technology, Media, Telecom, Retail & Consumer, Healthcare, and Business & Financial Services. The portfolio is also diversified by size and geography: mid-sized companies in French-speaking European countries; and larger companies across Europe, North America and key emerging markets (China, India, and Brazil).
Altamir is listed, since its inception in 1995, on the NYSE Euronext Paris exchange, Compartment B, ticker: LTA, ISIN code: FR0000053837. It is listed on the CAC Small, CAC Mid & Small, CAC All-Tradable and LPX Europe indices, among others. The total number of Altamir ordinary shares in circulation at 31 December 2013 was 36,512,301. For further information, please visit www.altamir.fr .

About Apax Partners France
Apax Partners France (comprising Apax Partners Mid-Market and Apax Partners SA) is a leading private equity firm in French-speaking European countries. With more than 40 years of experience, Apax Partners provides long-term equity financing to build and strengthen world-class companies. Funds managed and advised by Apax Partners France exceed €2.5 billion.

These funds invest in fast-growing middle-market companies across six sectors of specialisation. Current portfolio companies are:

• Technology /Media/Telecom: Altran Technologies, GFI Informatique, Infopro Digital, and Vocalcom
• Retail & Consumer: ALAIN AFFLELOU, Snacks Développement, Groupe Royer, and Thom Europe (Histoire d'or, Marc Orian and TrésOr)
• Healthcare: Amplitude, Capio, DBV Technologies, and Unilabs
• Business & Financial Services: Albioma, Groupe INSEEC, and Texa

For further information, please visit www.apax.fr

About SK FireSafety Group (SKG)
SK FireSafety Group is composed of a well-balanced and diverse range of experienced companies that specialise in one area of expertise: protecting people and assets against fire and other accidents. That is why the group is able to meet customers' safety needs without burdening them with a lot of extra work. The group has specialised knowledge about each and every market segment. In other words, its focus is on the essential factors: fire, safety and you.

SK FireSafety Group's business units -- Products, Systems, Oil & Gas and Aviation -- offer custom-made solutions for all existing market segments. The goal of SK FireSafety Group is giving customers the certainty that they are doing everything possible to protect their business and surroundings against fire, without having to worry about it too much themselves.

SK has locations in the Netherlands, Belgium, the U.K., Norway and the United Arab Emirates. The group has 650 employees.

For further information, please visit www.skfiresafetygroup.com

Contact

Raquel Lizarraga
Tél. : +33 1 53 65 01 33
E-mail : raquel.lizarraga@altamir.fr