THINCATS FUNDS MBO OF THAMES VALLEY CREATIVE AGENCY

Slough digital marketing agency, O’Neill Modern Media (OMM) has undergone an MBO after the partial exit of the founding shareholders.

ThinCats, the alternative lender to midsized SMEs supported the agency and the transaction was advised by HMT Corporate Finance.

Founded in 1983 OMM is an independent creative and digital print agency which also produces virtual and augmented reality projects.

Over the past 20 years it has successfully exploited the rise in the deployment of technology within both sports stadia and retail environments, with a focus on the expanding digital-out-of-home market.

Chief executive Howard Campion and chief financial officer Yousaf Ali led the MBO with funding from ThinCats providing additional working capital to support the future growth of the business.

Howard said: “HMT were mandated to find the right funding partner to support the management buyout of the company but also one that will allow OMM to accelerate its growth plans over the coming years.

“The management team are now fully aligned to take the business forward and we look forward to working with HMT again on future projects.”

Ricky Lane, Director at HMT Corporate Finance, based at Henley-on-Thames, added: “OMM operates in an exciting niche of a growing market and, having successfully grown the business over the past 20 years, the funding structure provided by ThinCats will allow Howard and the team to further capitalise on OMM’s industry leading position. We wish the team every success and look forward to working with them again on future transactions.”

Orthox’s knee cartilage repair tech made from silk closes £9m funding round

Orthox Ltd, the Oxford-based clinical stage company developing medical implants to repair damaged knee cartilage and other orthopaedic injuries, has completed a £3.2 million funding round to close its £9.2 million Series A financing round. The financing will support further clinical trials of its lead product, FibroFix, at Southmead Hospital Bristol, UK and in Budapest, Hungary.

Orthox implants are formed from FibroFix, a patented, biomaterial with a molecular structure, strength and resilience that emulates human knee cartilage. FibroFix is based on Fibroin, a protein extracted from silk fibres, which Orthox proceses using proprietary technology.

Silk is a remarkable natural material. It is many times as tough as high tensile steel while also being elastic, resilient and biocompatible – ideal qualities for repairing cartilage tissue. Orthox’s FibroFix implants are manufactured using ISO standard, commercially sourced, medical silks produced from the mulberry silkmoth, Bombyx mori.

Australian metals giant pays £164m for Williams Advanced Engineering

Australian iron ore company Fortescue Future Industries is buying Grove-based Williams Advanced Engineering (WAE) from private equity firm EMK Capital and Williams Grand Prix Engineering. The value of the deal is £164 million.

WAE will bring its race-bred critical battery technology to heavy carbon emitter Fortescue Future Industries, to help one of the largest iron ore producers in the world realise its 2030 net-zero target.

Williams Advanced Engineering first announced it was working with Fortescue Metals last year, when it was commissioned to design, build, test and integrate a battery system to power an electric mining haul truck.

Fortescue Founder and Chairman, Dr Andrew Forrest said: “This is the race of our lifetimes – the race to save the planet from cooking. The speed at which we move matters. Together FFI and WAE will work to decarbonise Fortescue

– with the aim of achieving that faster and more effectively than anyone else in the world”.

Craig Wilson, Chief Executive Officer WAE said, “High performance battery and electrification systems are at the core of what we do at WAE, and this acquisition and investment will enable the company’s further growth to support the delivery of zero emission products and services across automotive, motorsport and offhighway – and new sectors too.”

It’s been a recordbreaking year for Hazlewoods Corporate Finance

Hazlewoods Corporate Finance team are celebrating recordbreaking results after advising on transactions worth more than £1 billion in 2021.

In a bumper year Hazlewoods, the Gloucestershire firm has completed 170 deals with a combined value of £1.074 billion.

Twenty Eight per cent more deals were completed, and transaction values were up an impressive 41 per cent on the previous year.

(In 2020, a total of 133 transactions worth £763 million were finalised).

Corporate Finance Partner, Paul Fussell, said: “This is the best set of results we have ever achieved in the company’s 100-year history and it is down to the hard work and dedication from everyone in the team.”

Underwater robotic and camera tech business secures £2m investment

Bristol-based underwater robotic and camera technology company Rovco has secured £2 million in funding from the independent asset manager Boost & Co. The investment will be used to fund Rovco’s ongoing marketing strategy as well as bringing new employees into the business.

Rovco provides autonomous underwater vehicles and remotely operated vehicles to the offshore wind industry.

The business replaces video surveillance with 3D technology for its clients and uses artificial intelligence to complete the difficult and dangerous task of seabed mapping and sub-sea infrastructure inspection.

Parentpay Buys School Meal Ordering Software Provider

Coventry-based ParentPay Ltd, the UK’s leading provider of school payment and parental engagement services, has acquired London based BlueRunner Solutions Ltd which develops web and mobile-based meal ordering systems for schools, contract catering companies and hospitality.

The deal extends ParentPay’s existing meal management platform with additional functionality for meal ordering in primary schools as well as rewards, loyalty and hospitality booking for schools and tertiary education institutions.

Importantly, BlueRunner also brings a new tablet-based meal ordering and cashless catering product for secondary schools, rounding off the Group’s primary and secondary school meal management solutions.

The acquisition expands ParentPay’s reach into the hospitality and corporate catering markets in the UK.

Mark Brant, Group Chief Executive of ParentPay said, “ParentPay has long valued its relationship with school caterers and the ability to complement our existing suite of products with additional features for primary school catering alongside new cashless catering solutions for hospitality and secondary schools, is highly attractive.”

Optima Health sold for £130m to services and software company Marlowe

Marlowe, a leader in business services and software has bought Redditchbased Optima Health Group for £135 million.

With additional operation hubs in Glasgow, She eld, London and Taunton, Optima is a leading provider of technology enabled corporate health and wellbeing solutions.

The company helps organisations to bring out the best in their people by actively managing their health and wellbeing, and it supports workplace wellbeing with digital health solutions. Optima has around 1,000 employees, of which approximately 600 are clinical professionals.

Optima is part of a £1 billion UK occupational health market, which is growing at 4-5 per cent per annum. Increasing corporate and societal focus on employee health and wellbeing is driving the structural growth in this market, as are trends towards outsourcing and digitalisation.

01 PinPoint Media appoint new senior team

After a record 2021 for Cheltenham creative agency PinPoint Media, the company has made new appointments. Award-winning creative and film director, Doug Hurcombe has joined the company, along with Ian Smalley who joins as the new Head of Content Strategy.

Paula Bond has joined as marketing manager and Amy Green (pictured) steps into the role of Business Development Director.

02 Enterprise investment expert joins Blackfinch

Gloucester investment specialist Blackfinch Investments has appointed Mark Brownridge as Strategic Relationship Director.

Mark has more than 20 years experience in financial services, most recently as Director General of the EIS Association, the official trade body of the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS).

03 Vicon makes strategic hire

Vicon, the Oxford-headquartered world leader in motion capture, has Pablo Callejo as strategic business development director. Pablo joins Vicon after nine years working at motion capture company STT Systems, latterly as managing director.

04 Former National Trust boss takes reigns at Royal Agricultural University

Dame Fiona Reynolds DBE, former Director-General of the National Trust and Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge, has been appointed as Chair of the Governing Council of the Royal Agricultural University. Fiona lives close to the RAU’s Cirencester campus.

05

New team members for GL Law

Bristol and London law firm GL Law has welcomed new team members across the business.

Associate Solicitor Ed Ja a joins the corporate and commercial team, paralegal Lloyd Perry joins the private client team and solicitor Emma Burnett has joined the residential property team.

06

Let’s hear it for the girls at Wright Hassall

Midlands law firm Wright Hassall has announced a clutch of new appointments. Associates Danielle Pawson and Maya Elci join Paralegal Gaitri Majitha within the firm’s contentious probate team. Senior Associate Deborah Beal and Solicitor Katie Deakin have joined the private client team. Danielle Pawson specialises in contentious Court of Protection work and Maya Elci specialises in wills, trusts and probate disputes. Also in the photograph are Partner Tracy Ashby with Milena Stras, Susan Floyd and Partner Katie Alsop.

07 Property developer joins Oxford Science Park as development manager

The Oxford Science Park has appointed property developer Jitesh Patel to the new role of Development Manager. Jitesh joins from Kajima Partnerships where he worked on a variety of projects valued in excess of £200 million, including health care centres and housing. He has a MSc in Facilities Management and BSc in Building Surveying.

08

Chartered accountants Curo welcome new partner

Bromsgrove-based Chartered Accountants Curo have taken on a new partner as it continues to expand across the West Midlands region. The firm was set up in 2005 by former KPMG colleagues Anna Madden and Julia Gallagher. Stuart Wood joins Curo from KPMG in Birmingham where he was an Audit Director for nearly 20 years.

09

Vocational learning expert steps up to Advanced Manufacturing Centre

One of the UK’s leading figures in vocational and technical learning has been appointed as managing director of the Advanced Manufacturing Training Centre.

David Grailey has more than 30 years’ experience in the UK education and skills sector.

10 Whitley Stimpson appoints board director

Rebecca Craker has been made board director at chartered accountants and business advisers Whitley Stimpson.

Rebecca became director of the High Wycombe office in 2020 and was appointed board director the year following in a promotion which will see her help steer the whole firm’s strategy. She will continue to be based at Whitley Stimpson’s High Wycombe office.

11 Avon Group appoints new finance director to drive growth

Bristol manufacturer Avon Group has appointed a new finance director. Charles Toosey has previous experience in financial management and business consulting as finance director for Alvance Aluminium Group and as an associate director at Grant Thornton.