3i's Aspen Pumps boosts Australasian presence with bolt-on

Aspen Pumps was already familiar with Pro Pipe Supplies, with which it has been collaborating since 2006. The bolt-on will allow Aspen to strengthen its presence in the Australasian market.

This is the first investment made by Aspen since it was acquired by 3i earlier this year. In February, the GP bought the business from Inflexion in a deal valuing Aspen at £105m. The vendor did well on the deal, reaping a 14x return in the space of eight years – Inflexion had supported the management buyout of Aspen Pumps in March 2007 in a deal understood to be worth £25m.

Company
Established in 1999, Pro Pipe is a distributor operating in the Australian HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) market. Meanwhile, Aspen manufactures mini pumps used to remove water from air conditioning and refrigeration systems. It also sells a range of products for air-conditioning installers and engineers. Established in 1992, the business is based in Hailsham, Sussex; it reported EBITDA of £10m in 2014.

People
Peter Wilson worked on the original Aspen deal for 3i.

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