A US-based non-destructive testing services provider has become the first company to be acquired by a recently founded industrial Group that aims to establish a multi-sector, international testing and certification conglomerate for the aerospace sector.
The Hansen Group, which is located in a 65,000 square foot facility in Boston, Massachusetts and employs around 20 people, offers services such as magnetic particle inspection, chemical processing inspection, fluorescent penetrant inspection, ultrasonic inspection and spot micro Inspection.
The acquisition signals further consolidation in the testing services market, which has seen firms such as Element race to acquire smaller firms around the world in an attempt to provide a global one-stop shop for multinational clients in aerospace and other industrial sectors.
Phenna Group’s acquisition of Hansen has been funded by UK private equity firm CVC Credit Partners.
Phenna, which is headquartered in Nottingham in the UK and was founded last year, aims to become “a dynamic Group of specialist businesses focused on the testing, inspection, certification, and compliance [TICC] sector”. It plans to provide these services to multiple sectors, including aerospace, automotive and oil and gas.
As well as the acquisition of Hansen, Phenna has also bought Scottish document management company First Scottish and plans to make three more deals before the end of May. The Group is seeking other partner companies with revenues of between £5 and £50 million and annual growth of more than 5%.
Paul Barry, Group CEO of Phenna Group said, “Closing this deal accelerates our ability to create a differentiated group of TICC businesses, with a global footprint.”
Neale Broadhead, senior managing director within CVC Credit Partners’ team said, “This traditionally fragmented industry is ripe for disruption and we’re delighted to be supporting an early mover in the space.