Pryme Group, the Dundee-headquartered integrated manufacturing firm, has acquired Hydratron for an undisclosed sum as part of its growth plans to achieve turnover of more than £40million by 2021.
CEO Angus Gray said the acquisition of the long established and highly-respected business from Sheffield-based Pressure Technologies was the ‘perfect fit’ for Pryme and would provide comprehensive engineering services to clients across large parts of the UK as well as increase the group’s presence across the oil and gas, aerospace and defence sectors.
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Hydratron supplies high pressure and flow control equipment to the global oil and gas industry. It manufactures and supplies bespoke products worldwide, including high pressure air-driven liquid pumps, gas boosters and associated systems.
Located in Altrincham, near Manchester, the company was founded more than 35 years ago and has a comprehensive partner network in North America, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Australia.
The newly-acquired business complements Pryme’s existing operations in Dundee, Ellon (Aberdeenshire), Morecambe and North Shields and will allow the business to increase service delivery times and lower overheads for manufacturing by avoiding sub-contracting.
Hydratron, which employs 30 people, will continue to trade as normal under its current name. The company recorded turnover of £3.9million for its September 2017 year-end.
Pryme will assist Hydratron in entering new sectors such as aerospace and defence as well as new segments of the oil and gas industry. Production synergies are expected to create greater efficiencies and help grow the business by 15 to 20 per cent over the next 12 months.
Angus Gray, CEO at Pryme Group, said: “We are delighted to have acquired a business with such a strong international brand and presence as Hydratron. It is a company that we all respect, with parts of the group having dealt with them previously through various oil and gas projects, and we look forward to strengthening these relationships and integrating key areas across the business.
“I would also like to pay tribute to the team at Simmons for their support in getting this deal across the line. We can now look forward to developing Hydratron into new markets, such as aerospace and defence, whilst the company’s existing supply chain will benefit from Pryme’s expertise and capability from design and fabrication to machining and testing.”
John Hayward, CEO at Pressure Technologies, said: Hydratron is a great business working in a tough market sector. Whilst successful steps have been taken to re-align the business with its core markets and establish the foundations for growth as the oil market improves it needs to scale up quickly if it is to remain competitive.
“The sale of the business to Pryme will immediately enhance its critical mass and market position. We would like to thank everyone at Hydratron for their hard work and wish them all the best for a bright future with Pryme Group.”
Jason Smith, director, energy private equity at Simmons and board member at Pryme Group, said: “We would like to welcome everyone associated with Hydratron on board for what promises to be an exciting journey together for Pryme Group given the combined capability and market opportunities available to the group.”
The acquisition was backed by Simmons Private Equity and shareholders of Pryme Group. A corporate finance team at KPMG in Leeds, led by Giles Taylor and supported by Surinderpal Matharu and Charlie Morris, advised Pressure Technologies on the disposal of Hydratron.
Following the acquisition, Pryme Group now employs 260 people and expects to increase turnover from £15.6million in March 2018 to more than £19.5million by the end of its current financial year.
In January, the business announced the creation of a new engineering services division in North Shields, Tyneside. The 58,000 sq. ft manufacturing centre, developed for an initial £9.5million, will be fully operational later this year and house best in class machinery alongside multiple complementary services to allow Pryme’s customer base to bring innovative products to market.
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