09 Sep 2016

BVCA announces winners of the Scotland Management Team Awards 2016

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The British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA) is pleased to announce the winners of the Scotland Management Team Awards 2016, our annual celebration of excellence in private equity and venture capital, produced in association with Grant Thornton UK LLP.

Now in its eighth year, the BVCA Management Team Awards recognise and reward the achievements and success of businesses across the UK which are backed by private equity and venture capital funds.

All the winners will be announced and presented with their prize tonight at the annual BVCA Scotland Dinner, held at The Balmoral Hotel, Edinburgh. They will now be entered into the national final to compete against other UK regions before the national winners are announced at the BVCA Gala Dinner on 8 December in London.

The full list of winners for the BVCA Scotland Management Team Awards 2016:

Winner 
Backed by 
Category 
MB Aerospace Blackstone
and now GHO Capital
Large Company   Team
Stevenswood &
M Squared Lasers (joint winners)
BGF Mid-Market Team 
Edesix Panoramic Growth Equity Venture or Growth Company Team 
Craig Gallagher, MB Aerospace Blackstone CEO

Neil McInnes, who leads Grant Thornton’s Corporate Finance Team in Scotland and was a member of the judging panel, said “It has been particularly encouraging to see such a strong list of nominations in each category this year. It is to the credit of the management teams and their backers that our decision in selecting the winners was so difficult. We had such strong candidates from across a diverse range of sectors, but the winners have distinguished themselves by excelling in their chosen markets. Congratulations to them all.”

The winners are:

Large Company Team

MB Aerospace

Backed by Blackstone


MB Aerospace is an international group headquartered in Motherwell which provides complex engineering solutions to some of the key names in the aerospace and defence market.

The company provides an in-depth knowledge of critical manufacturing technologies and the global supply chain management to support complex aero-engine component manufacture and repair.

The group has facilities in the UK, the US and Poland and key customers include Pratt & Whitney, Rolls-Royce, General Electric, Boeing, United Technologies Aerospace Systems and the US Department of Defense.

Blackstone acquired the group in December 2015 from Arlington Capital Partners, which first invested in the business in 2013 in a secondary buyout from LDC. LDC backed a management buyout in 2007 and also reinvested alongside Arlington following the sale.

Judges’ comments: “The team at MB Aerospace have built an exceptionally valuable, international business, both organically and through well-chosen acquisitions. The sale in 2015 to Blackstone is testament to its strategic position and continuing potential for growth. MB Aerospace is also an important provider of high-value employment in Motherwell.”



Mid-Market Team

The mid-market category, the judges felt that two management teams stood out as exceptional, in contrasting businesses, but both equally needing to be recognized for their achievements:

Stevenswood (joint winner)

Backed by BGF


Stevenswood is one of Scotland’s largest manufacturers of PVCu and aluminium windows, doors and conservatories.

The business was founded in 1997 by Chief Executive Ron Hepburn. Today it manufactures more than 1,000 windows and doors per week, and sells its bespoke manufactured products through trade counters across Scotland and at its headquarters in Livingston.

BGF invested a minority stake in February 2015 as part of Stevenswood’s expansion plans. It has already added four new counters and recorded a 23% rise in sales in the last year. Since BGF’s investment, the business has added 60 staff, taking its total headcount up to 158.

Judges’ comments: “Ron Hepburn and his team are achieving rapid and profitable growth in what is a mature, tough and competitive sector. Their results are testament to excellence in both product quality and customer service.”



M Squared Lasers (joint winner)

Backed by BGF


M Squared Lasers designs and manufactures next-generation lasers and photonic instruments that bring new capabilities, higher reliability and greater ease of use to a diverse range of industrial and scientific applications, including remote sensing, frontier science, bio-photonics, defence, microscopy, spectroscopy and metrology.

Founded in 2006 and headquartered in Glasgow,M Squared Lasers has offices in Silicon Valley and Cambridge, Massachusetts,with distributors in Australia, China and Japan. In January, Tech City UK named it as one of the 30 fastest growing UK tech companies, and in April it was named as a winner of Queen’s Award for Enterprise.

BGF invested £3.85m of growth capital in April 2012, and since then the business has more than doubled its revenues. BGF reinvested in 2014.

Judges’ comments: “The judges were impressed with the team’s skill in building a market-leading instrument business, selling around the world. The team has succeeded in balancing profitable growth with continuing innovation in laser technology.”



Venture or Growth Company Team of the Year

Edesix

Backed by Panoramic Growth Equity


Edesix is a manufacturer of body worn video solutions, helping to improve safety for those in public facing roles, such as police officers, ambulance and hospital staff and security personnel.

The business was founded in Edinburgh in 2002 and is currently managed by technology entrepreneurs Richard McBride,Chief Executive, and Robin Iddon, Chief Technology Officer. Its flagship product VideoBadge is a body worn video system styled as an ID card holder. Customers include First Great Western, The Ministry of Justice, Police Scotland and the Abu Dhabi Police Force.

Panoramic Growth Equity first invested in the business in 2014 and made a follow-on investment in December 2015.

Judges’ comments: “The judges applauded Richie McBride and Robin Iddon’s achievement in taking Edesix from an idea through to a profitable business in a new and growing market, balancing the need to make profits with investment in innovative new products.”



CEO of the Year

Craig Gallagher, MB Aerospace

Backed by Blackstone


Craig Gallagher, MB Aerospace Chief Executive, has been with the company for over 10 years.

He has taken part in five buyouts since the company was spun out of Motherwell Bridge back in 2003 and has overseen a transformation of the business into a global player in the aerospace engineering market.

With a presence in the UK, US and Poland, Craig has been instrumental in this expansion. Under its various private equity owners, the company has embarked on an extensive buy and build strategy, acquiring businesses to help expand its market share and international footprint.

The company now employs around 960 people, and with both LDC and Arlington’s investment, it recorded both headcount and revenue growth.

Judges’comments: “The judges commended Craig’s passion and commitment in leading MB Aerospace all the way from a small business through to its current global scale, taking in five private equity transactions along the way."


Notes to editor
  1. The BVCA Management Team Awards, produced in partnership with Grant Thornton, are the only awards to celebrate the achievements of UK private equity and venture capital-backed management teams. The awards consists of two rounds: regional and national. Each of the eight regions has a judging panel which decides on the winners following nominations from BVCA members and a comprehensive due diligence programme with in-depth interviews. The regional winners were announced in May and can be found here. All were automatically entered into the national final. For more information about the award categories please click here.

  2. The Scotland judging panel consists of: Ross Marshall (Chair), Dunedin; Colin Bennett, LDC; Andrew Craig, Maven Capital Partners; Patrick Graham, BGF; Tony Lochery, Panoramic Growth Equity; Neil McInnes; Tony Robinson, Scottish Equity Partners; Steve Scott, Penta Capital; David Wilson, Panoramic Growth Equity.

  3. The British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA) is the industry body for the UK private equity and venture capital industry. The BVCA has over 500 member firms, representing the vast majority of UK-based private equity and venture capital firms and their advisers.

  4. Grant Thornton is one of the world’s leading organisations of independent assurance, tax and advisory firms. These firms help dynamic organisations unlock their potential for growth by providing meaningful, forward-thinking advice. Proactive teams, led by approachable partners in these firms, use insights, experience and instinct to understand complex issues for privately owned, publicly listed and public sector clients and help them to find solutions. More than 35,000 Grant Thornton people, across over 100 countries, are focused on making a difference to clients, colleagues and the communities in which we live and work. The UK Grant Thornton member firm provides services to over 40,000 privately held businesses, public interest entities and individuals. It is led by more than 185 partners and employs more than 4,200 of the profession's brightest minds. Find out more at www.grant-thornton.co.uk


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