Sheffield infrastructure firm completes £1.4m acquisition of engineering business

Fulcrum, the Sheffield-based independent multi-utility infrastructure and services provider, has completed a £1.4m acquisition of engineering business, CDS Pipe Services Ltd.

The acquisition is part of Fulcrum’s strategy to increase its direct delivery capabilities and to bring specialist engineering services in-house.

This is the second acquisition made by Fulcrum in recent months following the purchase of the Dunamis Group, an electrical infrastructure services company.

Further progress is being made in the electricity market as Fulcrum’s iDNO electrical asset licence is now fully-operational and early enquiry levels from Independent Connection Providers (ICPs) for Fulcrum to adopt its electricity assets are encouraging.

Fulcrum has also grown its gas asset estate by adopting the assets that the company and other Utility Infrastructure Providers (UIPs) construct.

There has been sustained growth in the gas assets secured from UIPs, with the committed external capital spend increasing from £2.8m as at 31st March 2017 to £9.5m as at 28th February 2018.

Fulcrum has also reported strong growth in its forward orders. As of 28th February 2018, the combined order book had increased by £8m to £38.3m, up from £30.3m at 31st March 2017.

Martin Harrison, Chief Executive of Fulcrum, stated: “The successful execution of the company’s strategy continues to place Fulcrum in a strong financial and operational position.

“The recent acquisition of Dunamis and CDS announced today has enhanced our service offering and in-house capabilities, establishing and growing our market leading position in both infrastructure delivery and utility asset ownership. We remain confident in our outlook for the business”.

Law firm Walker Morris advised Fulcrum on its acquisition of CDS. The Walker Morris team comprised: Richard Naish, Ed Brown, Luke Riley (Corporate), Sarah Bruce (Tax), Andrew Rayment and Lorna Hopps (Employment), Andrew Maclean (Real Estate), Charlotte Wright and Anusha Price (Commercial), Craig Looker (Pensions), Rachel Turnbull (Regulatory & Compliance) and Alan Harper (Intellectual Property).

Richard Naish added: “Fulcrum continues to be successful and demonstrate strong leadership and financial management.

“As such we’ve been delighted to work with the management team again on this strategically important acquisition as it continues to build on its success.”