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The acquisitions expand Exigent’s footprint and advance the platform’s focus on providing integrated services for complex mechanical systems including HVAC, plumbing, and controls
DETROIT–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Leading lower middle-market private equity firm Huron Capital (“Huron”) announced its portfolio company, The Exigent Group (“Exigent,” or the “Company”), acquired Smith-Boughan Mechanical (“Smith-Boughan”) and, in a separate transaction, Electrical Automation Systems (“EASI”).
“The partnerships with Smith-Boughan and EASI further strengthen our position and allow us to deliver great value to our employees, customers, and other stakeholders in current markets, in addition to providing expansion into the platform’s fourth region.”
Smith-Boughan and EASI represent the sixth and seventh acquisitions in Exigent since the platform’s initial acquisition in August 2022. Exigent was launched from Huron’s buy-and-build ExecFactor® approach of investing in businesses providing mission-critical services where Huron has deep experience, established playbooks, and a long history of partnering with exceptional CEOs to build premier companies.
“We are proud to join the Exigent Group and understand how Smith-Boughan’s expertise and customer base make us a great fit for the team,” said Sam Halker, President of Smith-Boughan.
Smith-Boughan was founded in 1927 and services Northwest and West Central Ohio. The company provides a full suite of service offerings, including HVAC, plumbing, controls, sheet metal fabrication, and process piping for a variety of end markets, including industrial, healthcare, government, education, and other commercial customers.
“With our roots in controls, HVAC, and mechanical services and shared vision for growth with Exigent leadership, we are uniquely positioned for future success in our market and in collaboration with the other Exigent companies,” said Jeff Ashe, President of EASI.
EASI is a well-established building automation, controls, and mechanical services company based in Pasadena, Maryland, with a second office in Salisbury, Maryland. EASI provides services across education, government, and other commercial end markets.
“We are preparing to embark on our third year of growth and with the support of the Huron team, Exigent is poised to continue our service and geographic expansion,” said Peter van Niekerk, CEO of Exigent. “I am excited to welcome Sam and Jeff to the team and leverage our combined expertise and best practices to continue building the best group in mechanical services.”
“Exigent’s new partners, Smith-Boughan and EASI, enable the Company to better serve its customers and capture new market opportunities,” said Jim Mahoney, Managing Partner at Huron. “Together, we’re positioned to leverage our combined expertise to keep large, critical facility operations running optimally and efficiently.”
Upon the completion of these acquisitions, Exigent will have operations in the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Northeast, and Midwest regions of the United States. Exigent continues to seek new partnerships with highly technical, union-powered mechanical and plumbing service companies in the eastern half of the country.
“These acquisitions accelerate our strategy of being a leading, service-forward mechanical services company,” said Cale Kaczmarek, Principal at Huron. “The partnerships with Smith-Boughan and EASI further strengthen our position and allow us to deliver great value to our employees, customers, and other stakeholders in current markets, in addition to providing expansion into the platform’s fourth region.”
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About Huron Capital Partners
Huron Capital is a leading lower middle-market private equity firm focused on partnering with outstanding management teams to build leading service companies. Through HCP Services, we bring a people-first and thematic approach to investing in mission-critical service companies in the infrastructure, facility, and residential sectors where we have a long history of success, proven playbooks, and extensive resources. We seek to make control investments in leading service businesses with $20 million to $200 million in revenue.
With our operational resources, we empower our management partners to drive significant growth through initiatives such as professionalizing operations, improving service offerings, executing M&A strategies, and accessing new markets. We pride ourselves on an unwavering commitment to candor, trust, accountability, and transparency in our relationships with management teams, investors, advisors, and employees.
Founded in Detroit in 1999, over the past 25 years we have acquired more than 275 companies through six control investment funds, managing over $2 billion in capital on behalf of a global institutional investor base. Through our proprietary ExecFactor® program, we utilize a proactive, thesis-driven investment process to identify the best potential management teams and investment opportunities in our core sectors.
For more information, please visit our website at www.huroncapital.com.
About ExecFactor®
ExecFactor® is Huron Capital’s proprietary, thematic investment strategy where we underwrite an industry and partner with an executive to deploy our buy-and-build investment model. This strategy brings together our sector focus, deep industry relationships, committed capital and repeatable buy-and-build approach to create a new platform investment.
Recently closed ExecFactor® investments include Criticore, a provider of mission-critical, highly technical electrical services, ExperiGreen, a residential lawn care services provider and Exigent, a provider of critical HVAC, plumbing, and other mechanical system repair, maintenance, and replacement services to complex facility operations for healthcare, education, industrial, government, and other commercial customers.
Recently exited ExecFactor® investments include Sciens Building Solutions, a prominent full-service commercial fire and life safety company and Pueblo Mechanical & Controls, a premier commercial HVAC and plumbing services company.
About Exigent
Reston, Virginia-based Exigent was launched by Huron Capital in 2022 as an ExecFactor initiative focused on providing critical HVAC, plumbing, engineering, and energy efficiency services as well as other mechanical system repair, maintenance, and replacement services to complex facility operations for healthcare, education, industrial, government, and other commercial customers.
Contacts
Jonathan Marino
Prosek Partners
jmarino@prosek.com
Former W.W. Gay Mechanical Contractor CEO to Guide Strategic Growth in Southeast Mechanical
Services Market
Jacksonville, FL – (June 27, 2024) — David Boree has partnered with the Exigent Group as Senior Advisor to the Board.
Mr. Boree previously served as President, CEO and Chairman of W.W. Gay Mechanical Contractor Inc. He has 40 years of experience in the industry and is a widely known executive leader in the Jacksonville marketplace and region, active in community and industry affairs. Exigent is a platform supporting a portfolio of mechanical service providers up and down the East Coast and Midwest. ThermaServe is Exigent’s mechanical services provider in the North Florida and South Georgia markets. The Group portfolio includes 7 operating companies that service the critical HVAC, plumbing, building controls, engineering, and energy efficiency needs of commercial customers including hospitals, resorts, schools, universities, and industrials.
Exigent CEO Peter van Niekerk commented, “We welcome the depth of expertise and insight David Boree brings to help us grow this excellent team and business in the Southeast, and are excited about the impact he will have on ThermaServe and the Exigent Group”. Mr. Boree added that he was “impressed with the customer reputation of ThermaServe and the caliber of resource in the Group” and “saw it as a great growth opportunity.”
Exigent keeps critical mechanical facilities running and efficient through HVAC, plumbing, engineering, and energy efficiency services. Exigent integrates world-class mechanical services expertise to solve complex problems that keep critical facilities operating with optimal uptime, efficiency, and comfort. We prioritize our customers, ready to immediately respond when you need us.
For more information:
Jarret Ryan
Exigent
Huron Capital’s ExecFactor® Platform, The Exigent Group, has Acquired its Fourth and Fifth Acquisitions Expanding into the New England Region and Broadening its Energy Efficiency and Sustainability Engineering and Advisory Capabilities.
DETROIT – (October 31, 2023)–Leading lower middle-market private equity firm Huron Capital (“Huron”) today announced that The Exigent Group (“Exigent” or the “Company”), a provider of commercial HVAC, plumbing, and other mechanical system repair, maintenance, and replacement services, has acquired Ambient Temperature Corp. (“ATCO”) and, in a separate transaction, Global Facility Solutions (“GFS”). Established in 1985, ATCO is a union mechanical services provider based in Newburyport, Massachusetts serving markets throughout New England. GFS, founded in 2006 and based in Columbia, Maryland, provides energy efficiency, sustainability, and engineering services to commercial clients across the United States.
“The addition of ATCO and GFS to Exigent’s growing portfolio of services and locations bolsters the Company’s sustainability offerings and expands our geographic coverage,” said Huron Partner Scott Hauncher. “Huron’s deep experience in mission-critical facility services combined with the outstanding leadership team led by CEO Peter van Niekerk has driven Exigent to become a market leader in the eastern United States.”
These acquisitions mark the fourth and fifth acquisitions for Exigent since its August 2022 launch. The Presidents of ATCO and GFS will remain in their leadership roles and will be shareholders of Exigent going forward. The ATCO acquisition marks Exigent’s first investment in the New England region, and both GFS and ATCO are an important part of a continuing expansion plan to service new markets, build out a base of top-tier clients, and expand offerings through several avenues, including the hiring of more skilled technicians.
“In looking to expand our business, I wanted a partner who could provide the resources and experience to help ATCO achieve its growth potential and who would be supportive of our culture and the strong union employee base that drives our success,” said ATCO President Russ Stiles. “Joining forces with the Exigent platform will allow ATCO to grow organically and via acquisition throughout New England. I am excited to be an investor in Exigent and to continue running the business with the outstanding team we have built over the years.”
“GFS is proud to partner with a best-in-class mechanical services provider and expand our offerings to key clients and core markets supported by Exigent,” said Robert Calloway, President, and CEO of GFS. “It’s exciting to team with an established and experienced investor who understands how to drive organic growth while guiding overall firm strategy.”
Honigman LLP served as legal advisor, and Moss Adams LLP served as financial diligence advisor to Huron and Exigent.
Huron Capital brings a people-first and thematic approach to private equity investing in secularly relevant and fragmented sectors of the North American facility and infrastructure and professional services industries. We pride ourselves on an unwavering commitment to candor, trust, accountability, and transparency in our relationships with management teams, investors, advisors, and employees.
Founded in Detroit in 1999, we partner with entrepreneurs and management teams, empowering their companies to new levels of excellence. We provide resources to help companies grow by
professionalizing operations, improving service offerings, executing M&A strategies, and accessing new markets.
Huron Capital has managed over $1.9 billion on behalf of a global institutional investor base. We fulfill our commitment to all stakeholders by employing a repeatable playbook to drive thoughtful value creation, showcased in over 270 acquisitions since the firm’s inception.
Reston, Virginia-based Exigent was launched by Huron Capital in 2022 as an ExecFactor initiative focused on providing critical HVAC, plumbing, engineering, and energy efficiency services as well as other mechanical system repair, maintenance, and replacement services to complex facility operations for healthcare, education, industrial, government, and other commercial customers.
ExecFactor is Huron Capital’s proprietary, thematic investment strategy, where we underwrite an industry and partner with an executive to deploy our build-and-build investment model. This strategy combines our sector focus, deep industry relationships, committed capital, and repeatable buy-and-build approach to create a new platform investment.
Notable ExecFactor initiatives include ExperiGreen, a leading provider of residential lawn care services; Sciens Building Solutions, a prominent full-service commercial fire and life safety company; Pueblo Mechanical & Controls, a premier commercial HVAC and plumbing services company; and Highstreet Insurance Partners, a full-service insurance brokerage platform.
Contact
Jonathan Marino
Prosek Partners
