Houlihan Lokey Advises Survitec Group

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that Survitec Group (Survitec) has agreed to sell Beaufort, a global aerospace and defence survival equipment manufacturer, in a carve-out transaction to Capitol Meridian Partners and Stellex Capital Management (Stellex). The transaction is expected to accelerate organic and inorganic growth investments.

Ellesmere Port, U.K.-based Beaufort supplies survival equipment for air, sea, and land forces to the U.S. Department of Defense, U.K. Ministry of Defence, and other allied militaries, as well as defence primes. Core products include flight jackets, anti-G trousers, liferafts, submarine-escape equipment, and immersion suits, and with coveted positions on a number of major, long-lived programs. The company employs 1,200 people globally and operates seven manufacturing facilities across the U.S., U.K., Germany, and Australia.

Beaufort is at the forefront of innovation in survival technologies, with proven capability delivering world-first solutions across air, land, and sea domains. As the aerospace and defence business of Survitec Group, Beaufort is dedicated to delivering mission-critical solutions that protect and enhance the performance of defence organizations globally.

Beaufort CEO Dom Cartwright said, “I thank our colleagues at Survitec for their support and for entrusting us with this next chapter of innovation and growth. We’re honored and excited to lead Beaufort as an independent company backed by investors with long histories in aerospace and defence. Our mission to protect those who serve is steadfast; now we will have greater focus and capital to further invest in innovation and provide even better service to our customers and partners.”

“We look forward to partnering with Dom Cartwright and the Beaufort team as we build on the company’s multi-decade track record of quality, innovation, and service,” said Adam Palmer, Founding Partner of Capitol Meridian Partners, and Karthik Achar, Partner at Stellex. “As a platform with a global footprint and embedded positions on critical programs, we believe Beaufort is well-positioned to benefit from strong and accelerating defence spending worldwide. We intend to pursue complementary acquisitions, invest to expand the product portfolio, and deepen customer relationships.”

Founded in 2021, Capitol Meridian Partners invests at the nexus of commercial and government markets, targeting opportunities where the firm can invest and drive value creation through active engagement with management. The firm draws upon a deep network of industry veterans curated over 25-plus years of its principals’ experience in the sector to bring thoughtful strategic resources to each investment opportunity.

With offices in New York, London, Pittsburgh, and Detroit, Stellex is a private equity firm with more than $5 billion in AUM. Stellex seeks to identify and deploy capital in opportunities that stand to benefit from its operationally focused and hands-on approach to investing. Portfolio companies are supported by Stellex’s industry knowledge, operating capabilities, network of senior executives, strategic insights, and access to capital. Sectors of particular focus include aerospace, defence, and government services, transportation and logistics, manufacturing, real economy and business services, food processing, and tech-enabled services.

Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive financial advisor to Survitec and initiated, structured and negotiated the transaction. This transaction underscores Houlihan Lokey’s expertise and leadership in the global A&D sector and ability to coordinate M&A transactions between different geographies using our local presence, dedicated sector professionals, and global buyer access.

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