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Top story
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NCC Group makes £10m signing
NCC Group, the Manchester-based IT security and consultancy business, has made its third acquisition in two years. Next Generation Security Software, a business based in Surrey, will cost the business up to £5.2m in the first instance, with a further payment of £4.8m payable in August 2009. In the year to June 2008, NGSS generated revenue of £5.2m and profit before tax of £500,000. NCC Group expects the business should contribute more than £0.9m of profit before tax on revenues in excess of £6m in its first 12 months of NCC Group ownership. Chief executive Rob Cotton said: “NGSS is without any doubt one of the most respected security assurance businesses in the market. This acquisition clearly fits with our strategy of being market leader in web security and associated testing.”
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Deals
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Acal buys Manchester service company
Software company Acal has acquired 75 per cent of SSE, a Manchester-based distributor of service parts for IT products, for £1.85m. SSE services laptops, servers, printers and more recently mid-range and high-end Unix services and storage systems. SSE was founded in 1987 as Delostar Electronics and bought by Flextronics Global Services (Manchester) last year, followed by an MBO in March 2008. Acal bought the business to complement its own products and to gain a foothold in the supply of spare parts. Manchester-based corporate finance adviser Rickitt Mitchell advised the management team.
Edmundson goes Dutch
Knutsford-based Edmundson Distribution, which trades in the UK as Amari Plastics, has agreed a deal to buy Vink Group, the distribution services arm of Dutch company Kendrion. Vink is a distributor of semi-finished plastics and has 11 locations across Europe. Although the exact value of the deal was undisclosed, Kendrion has also disposed of subsidiary Servico and said the combined value of the two deals was €94m.
Stand strong and support each other, says Adams
Phil Adams, director of investment bank Altium’s Manchester operation, has completed four deals over the last four weeks and is confident of completing the £30m-plus “public to private” of software company Ascribe. He called for advisers and funders to continue to support local teams. Adams told Insider this morning: “We have to support one another and keep work in the region through this period. Market conditions are really tough, but deals are there to be done.”
What is an MBI?
With more and more businesses facing distressed turnaround situations, this month Insider’s online Deals Advice section brings you a new feature to explain management buy-ins (MBIs), a rare sight in the deals market that could, say advisers, become more prevalent as funders call for skills input at management level. “The real value for MBI teams is going to be in buying businesses shortly before or in an insolvency process because they’ll be paying very little for goodwill but getting a slimmed-down business,” says John Green, chief executive of accountancy and business advisory firm Pierce in Blackburn. To read more, visit our Deals Advice section and click on What is… an MBI?
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Business
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Times get tough for Holidaybreak
In yet another sign of strain in the travel industry, Northwich-based Holidaybreak's annual profits have slid as the squeeze on disposable incomes continues. The company, which provides education, leisure and activity travel holidays, said its performance was “disappointing,” although it believes the diversity of its services will ensure it remains resilient. For the year to 30 September the group reported a 19 per cent fall in pre-tax profit to £32.4m, but revenues rose 27 per cent to £455.1m from £357.9m a year earlier. It halved its dividend per share to 16p.
Two million to decide on TIF
Just under two million people could decide whether or not Greater Manchester accepts Transport Innovation Fund investment and congestion charging, returning officer Sir Neil McIntosh said yesterday. A total of 1,940,885 ballot packs have been sent out across the ten boroughs, each of which will vote by 11 December on the proposals. It’s been another stormy week in the PR battle, with the Stop the Charge coalition calling for McIntosh to take action over a Yes campaign leaflet it says contravenes the standards of conduct expected in a referendum, a protest dismissed by the Yes campaign as “hysterical allegations”.
IP changes good news for small businesses
The move to cut the cost of European Trade Mark Office fees by approximately 40 per cent will encourage more small businesses that protecting intellectual property rights in Europe is not prohibitively expensive, says patent and trade mark attorney Mathys and Squire. Gary Johnston, partner at the firm’s Manchester office, said: “This is excellent news for small businesses because a registered trade mark is an extremely important and valuable asset.”
North Wales gets plugged in
A £30m fibre network offering high speed connections to occupiers of more than a dozen business parks in North Wales is set to be launched later today. The network, funded by the Welsh Assembly Government, the European Regional Development Fund and Geo Networks, will stretch more than 200 miles between Holyhead in Anglesey and the UK’s core network in Manchester. Its launch marks the first phase of a long-term Welsh Assembly Government programme to make affordable high-bandwidth services available throughout Wales.
Spiderman goes to university
The University of Manchester has teamed up with Cheadle-based licensed textile company Character World to produce an innovative range of 3D Spider-Man duvet covers and bed linen. The design technology, invented by the university’s School of Materials and Tri-D Textiles, uses digital processing and printing techniques to create 2D and 3D imagery. The new range of duvets will be sold exclusively through Argos stores. Professor Robert Young, the head of the School of Materials at the university, said: “We’ve broken dimensional shackles to create dynamic imagery on textiles.”
Peel looks to build power
Peel Energy has joined with Danish state-owned energy business DONG with a proposal for a coal-burning power station in Hunterston, Scotland. “Clean coal” is one of the areas Peel, the owner of Clydeport, is keen to develop further and this project could involve carbon capture by pumping emissions for storage in wells under the sea, although it is not likely to be ready until 2018.
Tepnel lands US contract
Wythenshawe-based pharmaceutical research company Tepnel Life Sciences is set to work with the Illinois Department of Public Health after its cystic fibrosis test was selected as part of a new mandate to screen all newborn babies for the disease. It’s hoped that the Elucigene CF-US test will help to confirm diagnosis at an early stage so appropriate treatment can begin. Studies indicate an early diagnosis of cystic fibrosis can save between $250,000 and $1,250,000 of medical costs per patient, depending on the severity of the disease.
Techies called to the Reebok
The Softworld exhibition, a free event offering IT experts, directors and decision makers the opportunity to discuss problems and solutions with experts and try the latest software developments, is to hold its Softworld HR & Payroll North exhibition on 10 February next year at Bolton’s Reebok stadium.
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Property
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Cumbria County Council backs Stobart
Cumbria County Council’s development control committee has voted 11-0 in favour of the plans by Stobart Air to redevelop Carlisle Airport in a £20m scheme that will provide a new headquarters for the haulage business. But the committee recommended that it would like to see a binding agreement signed to improve passenger facilities and the runway, as well as to provide a bus service. Carlisle City Council will next month discuss the Stobart proposal, a larger version of which was called in by the Government Office for the North West earlier this year.
Way cleared for Peel in Barton
Begbies Traynor, the administrator of Red City Developments, has approved the transfer of assets that will allow Peel Holdings to build a £30m stadium for Salford City Reds in Barton. Peel property director Mike Butterworth said: “While it has been a long drawn-out process for all concerned we are now finally in a position to create a deliverable vision.”
DTZ goes for Webb
Consultancy DTZ has appointed Donald Webb as head of its economic consulting team in the North West. Webb, who joins from the firm’s Edinburgh office, boasts 14 years experience in economic and management consultancy with public sector clients including the Scottish Government, Scottish Enterprise, the Northwest Regional Development Agency, the Welsh Assembly Government and various research bodies and universities.
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