VT Group Expands U.S. Support Services
Offering
November 21, 2007
UNITED KINGDOM--Defence and support services
company VT Group (VT) has expanded the range of its activities in
the United States with the announcement today of the acquisition,
subject to US regulatory approvals, of military aviation support
specialists Advanced
Engineering and Planning Corp., Inc. (AEPCO)
The acquisition, from AEPCO's founding shareholders, will be
completed for a consideration of $70 million on a debt free, cash
free basis, financed by existing borrowings. A further $5 million
will be paid depending on the company's future performance.
Completion is expected by January 2008. AEPCO manages life cycle
support programmes, primarily for US Army helicopters. The
business, which will strengthen the average margins on VT's
activities in the US, had a turnover of $65.9 million in 2006 with
an underlying profit before tax of $6 million.
The company was established in 1979 by its founders. AEPCO is
based in Maryland but carries out most of its activities at
Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, where its major customer
is the US Army Aviation and Missile Command (AMCOM). The company
provides logistics, technical and programme management for
helicopters including the Apache, Blackhawk, Chinook, Warrior and
Cobra. Key services include life-cycle support for platforms,
systems and equipment, integrated logistics, technical
documentation and training. In total, the company employs some 450
people. Since signing the Purchase Agreement, AEPCO has been
awarded $180m worth of new contracts to provide support to the US
Army for delivery over the next 5 years. This gives a total order
book in excess of $450m. AEPCO will extend the Group's support
services in the US to higher added value contracts supplementing
VT's existing work in base operations and systems upgrades for
naval vessels.
VT Group Chief Executive Paul Lester commented: "The acquisition
of AEPCO, particularly in light of the new contract wins, will help
us to grow our business in the US further with its logistics,
engineering and management skills." "It will provide us with a
presence in the significant US Department of Defense logistics
sector, where there is exciting potential for future growth. It
will also strengthen VT Services' position as a major contractor to
the Department of Defense."
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