Marlowe snaps up fire protection firm Swift in £13m deal

Manchester firm Marlowe plc is set to acquire fire protection and security system provider Swift in a deal worth £13m.

Marlowe, which acquires and develops companies in the UK’s outsourced business services sector, has said the transaction represents a step towards its goal of creating an asset maintenance-focused business-to-business service group.

With a team of 270 employed across four UK offices, Swift posted a pre-tax profit of £1.18m and revenues of £20.9m in the year ending May 31 2015.

Commenting on the deal, Marlowe chief executive Alex Dacre said: “The acquisition of Swift is the first step for Marlowe as we start to build a leading support services company focussed on critical asset maintenance services.

“Since May 2015, when Charles Skinner, Derek O’Neill and I joined Peter Gaze on the board we have, I believe, developed a deeply considered and tested strategy.

He continued: “During our search for targets we came to realise that Swift, led by industry veteran Nigel Jackson, was an ideal platform for growth in our chosen markets.

“Swift benefits from a broad base of annuity-type recurring revenues in a market which is underpinned by stringent legislation and is displaying growing barriers to entry.”

To part finance the acquisition, Marlowe has proposed raising £3m through an underwritten subscription with both new and existing shareholders.