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On Hold: Manufacturer of Paint Application Equipment for Glass Containers

This Company is a leader in its field, designing, building and installing specialised paint application plant for finishing glass containers for the packaging industry mainly in the beverage and cosmetics industries.  It provides a turnkey paint plant solution for customers from concept to commissioning.  The owner, a highly skilled engineer who is a specialist in his field, wishes to begin the process of retirement. 

Since 1995, the Company has supplied and installed over 50 machines in 20 or more countries across the World on most continents and is a leading player in its sector.  The beverage and cosmetics markets are large and growing as designers demand ever more innovative effects.  The unit sales value of the plant it supplies averages at about £500k but it can be over £1M. 

The business is well known and respected by the key market influencers including the coatings manufacturers.  There are strong prospects for growth supplying machines to existing and new markets and there is also an opportunity to increase service income and sales of spares. 

The business has relatively low overheads, focusing on design, project management, assembly of bought in/specified components and installation and there 5 full time employees.  The business operates out of a c 60 sq m modern factory unit. 

The majority of machines are built under contract requiring stage payments so project cash flow is generally positive.   

Sales in the 2017/18 Financial Year were c £1.1M generating an Adjusted EBITDA of c £150k.  The 'never-ending' BREXIT process is, inevitably, having a chilling effect and the business is finding it hard to secure orders at the normal rate at present.  However, assuming a sensible outcome of the BREXIT negotiations, the business would expect to see sustainable annual sales returning to a minimum level of £1.5M with Adjusted EBITDA proportionately higher. 

The Base Guide Price for 100% of the shares is £TBC and in addition, the owners will expect to share in ‘above base’ performance, linked to Annual Gross Profit, over the 3 years following Completion.  The vendor is prepared to stay on for a period of up to 2 years, on a part-time basis, to handover management control and to assist the new owners with technical and sales issues.  


Anderson Shaw is part of GS Verde Group, a leading advisory firm operating across the UK & Ireland

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