Bury St Edmunds-based Servest lined up for £534m takeover
Servest Multi Service Group for Business East feature. Pictured is CEO Rob Legge.
Bury St Edmunds-based major employer Servest the target for European company
Bury St Edmunds-based facilities management business Servest, which has been on the acquisition trail, is itself now a target for buyers.
It is believed that French-based company the Atalian Group is preparing to take over the business, which employs 300 in Suffolk and has its headquarters at Fornham All Saints.
Servest Group and Atalian Group already work together on some projects, and the deal is expected to be worth 611m euros (£534m).
The company has been growing year-on-year in the UK and now employs nearly 24,000 staff, working with more than 2,200 public and private sector clients, across the UK.
It provides a wide portfolio of services for businesses, ranging from cleaning and building maintenance to security, and pest control to compliance. It reported revenues of £457m in its 2017 accounts and is on track for £1bn turnover this year.
Servest was approached for a comment, but said no statement would be made at this time.
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Last month Servest Group grew with another major acquisition of its own. The group bought manufacturing support services company Aktrion Group for an undisclosed sum, in a move which it claimed would take it past the £1bn milestone.
Outsourcing firm Aktrion, based in Shropshire, runs and supports business and manufacturing operations for international clients.
Servest said the deal would enable it to play a “leading role” in the global manufacturing market and help with the development of its operational systems.
The Aktrion acquisition was built on Servest’s joint venture with French services group Atalian, launched in 2016, and intended to provide facilities management services across Europe.
At the time Rob Legge, Servest group chief executive, said: “Through a combination of organic and acquisitive growth, Aktrion has successfully developed a worldwide business, with a strong presence in printing, automotive, food and transport sectors, supporting its blue-chip client base. The demand for complex, integrated solutions will ensure our growth will continue to accelerate moving forward.
• This article was first published in the EDP and EADT on April 28, 2018.
