An award-winning Teesside firm has been snapped up by a billion-pound turnover Swedish group.
The founder of Stockton based Cleveland Cascades, which designs and manufactures dry bulk loading chutes, is set to retire after the company was sold to Enköping headquartered Lifco, for an undisclosed amount.
Set up in 2004 by Ian Barnard at Teesside Industrial Estate, the family-owned firm works in bulk handling facilities around the world, with its technology helping to eliminate dust pollution in ship and silo loading chutes.
Last year the company, which has 30 staff, was involved with projects across 10 different countries including Canada, Nigeria, USA, Chile, Russia, Cuba, Taiwan, Brazil, Israel and Turkey.
All the staff with Cleveland Cascades – which has won three Queen’s awards for Export, International Trade and Environmental Achievement, as well as the Engineering Council Environment Award – will transfer to the new owners, which turned over £1.2bn last year.
Mr Barnard, however, will exit the business and retire, while his son, Mathew Barnard will remain with the business as commercial director, alongside managing director Sally Buckworth.
Lifco’s startegy is to acquire and develop market-leading niche businesses with the potential to deliver sustainable earnings, and employs around 4,500 people across the group.
Matthew Barnard said: “We’re looking forward to joining the Lifco family as we embark on the next stage of our exciting journey.
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“As a family business, our values are very strong and we wanted to sell to a firm with a similar ethos to us, which is what attracted us to Lifco."
Accountancy group Azets provided corporate finance and tax advice to Cleveland Cascades while Ward Hadaway provided legal advice to the vendor.
Graham Cornforth, corporate finance partner at Azets in the North East said: “We were delighted to advise Ian and Mathew Barnard on their sale to Lifco.
“We’ve worked with them since 2019 on their exit strategy and it’s great to see the success of their company being recognised. From introducing Lifco, this deal completed very quickly but required massive effort from all parties to get it done in the timescales desired.
“Despite the challenges of the pandemic, Brexit and the uncertain economic outlook, this deal proves that attractive, well managed businesses will always be in demand. It’s credit to the resilience and enterprise of the North East business community that our teams remain so active.”