Alchemy sells ASSE division

Montagu Private Equity has acquired the Survitec Group in a £146m deal from Alchemy Partners.

The Northern Ireland-based company will retain the current management team, who will be joined by Montagu’s Simon Pooler and Anthony Greensmith as non-executive directors. Survitec, prior to the sale, was a division of Alchemy-owned Air-Sea Survival Equipment Ltd (ASSE, formerly Wardle Storeys), and is a manufacturer of safety and survival equipment.

Alchemy made the original buyout in January 1999 when the firm took Wardle Storeys private in a £123m transaction, of which £39 million was provided by Alchemy. In March 2002 the technical products division split-off and the remaining divisions operated under the ASSE name.

Survitec has manufacturing facilities in Belfast, Birkenhead, the USA, Germany and Italy together with wholly-owned distribution and servicing operations in Australia and New Zealand.