UK engineer Fandstan sold to New York’s Wabtec for £130m
FANDSTAN Electric Group, the London-headquartered engineering group whose subsidiaries have provided parts for London’s DLR and the Eurostar, has been sold to New York-listed Wabtec for £130m.
The private company was founded by Lord Tanlaw, a former director of his family firm Inchcape, whose grandfather was the final White Rajah of Sarawak, the dynastic monarchy in Borneo.
Fandstan designs, makes and installs electrical products for rail transportation and industrial uses. Subsidiaries of the company have been involved on a wide range of projects across the world, including London’s DLR and the Melbourne tram system in Australia. It reported sales of around £140m in 2012 and operating profits of £13m.
Wabtec is valued at $7bn (£4.2bn) and provides services for the rail and transit industry.
“The smooth conclusion of the sale shows the importance of bringing well-capitalised overseas strategic purchasers such as Wabtec to the table through a controlled process,” said Philip Barker from Cavendish, which were advising Fandstan on the deal.
ADVISERS FANDSTAN
PHILIP BARKER
CAVENDISH
Philip Barker joined Cavendish in 1999 and heads up the industrials group. An engineer and accountant by training, he has extensive experience in corporate finance, advising mid-market corporate clients and owner-managers. Prior to Cavendish, Barker worked at Hambros Bank after an initial career at Price Waterhouse, where he worked in consultancy and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1986. At Cavendish, Barker has worked on deals including the sale of ball tracking technology firm Hawk-Eye to Sony and the disposal of agricultural firm Spaldings to Marubeni Corporation.