Endless acquires Brabant Alucast

José Rojo
15 February 2016

Tweet
Facebook
LinkedIn
Google plus
Send to

Turnaround specialist Endless has bought Dutch car component manufacturer Brabant Alucast International (BAI) following a refinancing for the debt-ridden business.

Endless did not disclose the price paid to acquire BAI, but reports in the local press stated the GP will inject tens of millions into the business to help keep it afloat in the coming years. According to the firm, no job losses among the company's current 1,200 employees are expected following its takeover.

The deal comes a year after BAI struck an agreement with its lenders to refinance its existing senior facilities. Over the past four years, the business had operated at a loss and thus failed to meet its debt obligations.

In a recent interview, BAI CEO Marcel Schabos confirmed the company had narrowly avoided a bankruptcy scenario. The intercession of its previous shareholder Janivo, the investment holding of the Dutch Pont Brabant family, played a key role in renegotiating a deal with the lenders, Schabos said.

According to Schabos, who was named CEO of BAI in March 2015, the business had struggled to land new contracts among its client base in recent years. The executive attributed this to a management problem at the automotive parts supplier, leading to a slump in product quality and an expansion strategy that had gone too far.

As part of the changes, BAI shut down its Chinese and Brazilian operations and will solely focus on its European business from now on. Over the next few years, the company expects to benefit from a renewed focus on emission curbing programmes among car makers, which creates a need for lighter components.

Endless has yet to reveal which of its funds was used to acquire BAI. Having held a £525m first and final close for its fourth fund in December 2014, the turnaround specialist recently featured in an unquote" profile – at the time, unquote" data found the firm had landed 12 acquisitions over the past 18 months, effectively becoming the UK's second most active buyout house in the period.

Company
Founded in 2007, BAI produces high-pressure diecast aluminium and magnesium component for car makers.

Its flagship products Exactfit Casting and Vacurat Casting are manufactured at sites in the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and the Czech Republic. Headquartered in Oss, north of Eindhoven, the company employs 1,200 staff across these various locations.

People
Endless – Garry Wilson (founding partner); Francesco Santinon (partner); Matthew Jubb (associate director); Simon Hardcastle (general counsel); Stefan Nowakowsky, Jon Duffy (investment executives).
Brabant Alucast International – Marcel Schabos (CEO).

Advisers
Equity – Addleshaw Goddard, Andrew Smith, Andy Bates (legal); Loyens & Loeff, Vincent Vroom, Steven Wiggers (legal); EY, Jos Boerland (corporate finance).