This week may have been a shorter one for anyone in the UK due to the Early May Bank Holiday, but it was still packed with deal announcements. Once again, the industrials sector stood out to me as especially busy with a wide variety of sub-sectors represented. We have Palladio taking a microphone manufacturer, NB Renaissance picking up a producer of work safety footwear and AEI-backed AIM MRO adding on a manufacturer of masking products for aerospace engines.
Volume
Let’s start with microphones. Palladio Holding acquired DPA Microphones, a Danish microphone products manufacturer, from RCF Group.
Palladio has been a minority shareholder in the RCF Group since 2017. RCF Group designs, produces, and distributes products and systems for the professional audio segment. Due to the DPA acquisition, Palladio has significantly reduced its stake in RCF to focus on the planned growth path in support of DPA.
“Our goal is to continue to invest in the company to develop the business even further and take it to the next level,” said Nicola Iorio, managing partner of Palladio Holding.
In November 2022, Palladio acquired a majority stake in Wisycom, a specialist in audio equipment for broadcast, live and location sound applications.
Aerospace
Let’s move from the world of audio to aerospace. AIM MRO Holdings, a portfolio company of AE Industrial Partners (AEI), acquired Gerard Poly Mouldings (GPM), a company that designs and manufactures masking products for aerospace and gas turbine engines.
Nottingham, England-based GPM is AIM MRO’s second add-on acquisition since December 2022, following the acquisition of Tribologix in January 2023. AEI invested in AIM MRO in 2019.
“The addition of GPM will not only expand our capabilities but will also generate exciting opportunities to serve our existing customers with a more fulsome suite of solutions,” said Scott Wandtke, CEO of AIM MRO.
Aerospace has been a busy sector, and we’ve covered many aspects of it here on PE Hub Europe. For a deep dive into Aurelius Private Equity’s carve-out of airline caterer and onboard retail provider LSG Group International from Deutsche Lufthansa, take a look here. If you’re interested in reading about re-use and recycling of aircraft parts, you can read my interview with Baird Capital on ecube here. For those looking to read about defence rather than commercial aircraft, here’s our story on OpenGate’s add-on acquisition of rugged display manufacturer IRTS.
Safe shoes
Coming back to the ground again for a moment. NB Renaissance has signed an agreement to acquire 100 percent of U-Power, a pan-European company that develops and produces work safety footwear, alongside Franco Uzzeni, chairman of U-Power.
Franco Uzzeni will reinvest for a significant stake, equal to 30 percent, together with a group of investors led by NB Renaissance, including NB Private Equity platform and Style Capital, upon the completion of the deal.
NB Renaissance plans to expand U-Power’s product portfolio to improve worker safety, implement energy saving measures in the production plants of the company and extend the share of energy sourced from renewable sources, according to a release.
“By partnering with an exceptional entrepreneur and a very talented management team, our goal is now to expand the business into new geographies and product categories and create a worldwide leader in safety protection equipment,” said Stefano Bontempelli, co-founder and senior partner of NB Renaissance.
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