H.I.G. Europe Acquires Fibercore From Cisco
LONDON – February 16, 2011 – H.I.G. Europe, the European arm of global private equity firm H.I.G. Capital, today announced that funds advised by H.I.G. European Capital Partners LLP have acquired Fibercore, Ltd. (“Fibercore”), a UK based global market leader in the design and manufacture of specialty optical fibers, from Cisco.
Founded in 1982 and based in Southampton, England, Fibercore provides a wide range of specialty optical fiber products to customers globally within the aerospace, defence and telecommunications industries. Fibercore has a strong specialist manufacturing heritage and has won four Queen’s Awards for Enterprise including Innovation, Sustainable Development and International Trade. Fibercore’s products are central to the navigation and stabilization systems used on platforms as diverse as long-haul airliners, business jets, helicopters, satellites and space exploration vehicles developed for companies and government agencies in Europe, America and Japan. Fibercore’s specialty optical fiber is also a critical component in power amplifiers providing the next generation of high speed video and data transfer across the internet. Fibercore has been a leader in its field for over 20 years and its blue chip customer base includes global multinationals across the US, Europe and Asia.
H.I.G. Europe teamed with Fibercore management, headed by Chief Executive Officer Chris Emslie, to complete the transaction and will work closely with management to support and help implement the company’s growth strategy. Fibercore’s plans include continued global leadership through product innovation and high quality service delivery, helping increase both its geographic penetration and expansion into other related and developing markets.
Matthias Allgaier, Managing Director at H.I.G. Europe, commented:
“We are very pleased to announce our investment in Fibercore and our backing of Chris Emslie and his team in the management buyout from Cisco. The business is a global industry leader in this highly specialised field, its reputation achieved through a combination of strong blue chip customer relationships and a wealth of scarce in-house manufacturing and development expertise. Fibercore is a genuine UK export success story and we look forward to supporting the business in its continued international expansion.”
Chris Emslie, CEO of Fibercore, commented:
“With H.I.G. Europe, Fibercore has found an investor with deep financial resources and global reach. We have been impressed with the H.I.G. team, their dynamism and approach and welcome them as partners for the next stage in Fibercore’s expansion.”
Alastair Mills, Director at H.I.G. Europe, further added:
“We look forward to working with Chris and his team to continue to grow a phenomenally successful business and global innovator in the field of specialty fibers. The long tenure of Fibercore’s customer relationships and unparalleled market position provide the perfect foundations for its future development.”
The Fibercore investment marks H.I.G. Europe’s tenth new deal investment in the last 12 months and fourth since the start of 2011.
About H.I.G. Capital
H.I.G. Capital is a leading global private equity investment firm with more than GBP 6 billion of equity capital under management. Based in Miami, and with offices in Atlanta, Boston, New York, and San Francisco in the U.S., as well as affiliate offices in London, Hamburg and Paris in Europe, H.I.G. specializes in providing capital to small and medium-sized companies with attractive growth potential. H.I.G. invests in management-led buyouts and recapitalizations of profitable and well managed manufacturing or service businesses. H.I.G. also has extensive experience with financial restructurings and operational turnarounds. Since its founding in 1993, H.I.G. invested in and managed more than 200 companies worldwide. The firm’s current portfolio includes more than 50 companies with combined revenues in excess of GBP 5 billion. For more information, please refer to the H.I.G. website at www.hig.com.
About Fibercore:
Founded 28 years ago, Fibercore is a leading innovator, designer and manufacturer of specialty fiber serving more than 200 customers across the world. Products include specialty fiber for the Aerospace, Defence and Telecommunications industries – the business is a global market leader. The Company’s operations are headquartered in Fibercore House, a custom built Southampton based facility. Fibercore has 4 Queen’s Awards for Enterprise.www.fibercore.com.
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