Altec Engineering Group acquires Newton Aycliffe’s Hydrofit Alliance

Altec Hydraulics, the North Shields-based specialist hydraulic engineering company, has announced a deal to acquire the assets and trade of Hydrofit Alliance.

Muckle advise administrators in sale

Established in 2012, Newton Aycliffe-based Hydrofit Alliance had suffered recent challenges, particularly due to the market downturn in the Oil and Gas sector, leading the directors to place the business into administration.  Kelly Jordan, Associate Solicitor, led the Muckle team that acted for the administrators of Hydrofit in the sale of four trading businesses.

Andrew Haslam of Tait Walker was appointed administrator before Altec Hydraulics acquired the trade and assets.

Building on industry strengths

Alastair Waite, CEO of Altec Engineering, said: ‘Having acquired Quick Hydraulics last October, this was an excellent opportunity to do something really transformational within the hydraulics sector.

“Quick Hydraulics and Hydrofit both have excellent reputations and their strengths are highly complementary to each other, and to the wider Altec Group.  The expanded Altec hydraulics division immediately becomes the largest specialist hydraulic engineering business within Yorkshire and the North East.“

Quick Hydraulics managing director Andrew Esson, who leads the Altec hydraulics division, said: ‘The recent challenges in the Oil and Gas sector have created tough trading conditions across the UK hydraulics sector. However, this challenge also creates a fantastic opportunity to do something really exciting within the industry.

“The team at Hydrofit have a fantastic reputation and pedigree in the design and delivery of complex hydraulic systems, which complements Quick Hydraulics’ expertise in projects, engineering service, distribution and hydraulic training.

“Bringing together our two businesses under the Altec Engineering Group banner creates a hydraulics business whose capabilities will now be greater than the sum of its parts.“

Tony Kay, managing director of Hydrofit Alliance, said: ‘This is a great home for us. To be part of an engineering group that serves a wide range of British industry and that has a strategy for growth is ideal. To also be partnering a company that has a real reputation in our industry could not be better for us. We are looking forward to playing our part in the group growth. The world is our oyster!“

Growth through acquisition

This is the fourth acquisition by Altec in less than 18 months as the company continues to experience strong organic growth and make strategic acquisitions.

This deal follows hard on the heels of the acquisitions of West Yorkshire-based Sigma Technologies, Tanfield Lea business Ronco Engineering and Quick Hydraulics, based in North Shields and Aberdeen.

Altec have recently received the support of Business Growth Fund in a deal worth £6m to accelerate its growth plans, invest in people and technology and develop deeper relationships with clients who operate across multiple sectors.

Altec Hydraulics’ acquisition of Hydrofit follows on from the recent announcement that Quick Hydraulics is to open a Teesside base as it expands on the back of successful contract work for Wilton Engineering, Cleveland Potash and Caterpillar.

Multi-location engineering business

Andrew Esson said: “Following last month’s announcement, we have recruited a business development manager for the Teesside area, and we are in an advanced stage of our search for suitable premises to give us best in class office and workshop facilities.

“We have also had recent approval from Altec to establish a Yorkshire base, sharing office and workshop facilities with our Bradford-based sister company, Sigma Technologies. We have set our sights on developing a specialist hydraulics business of substance and scale, and adding Hydrofit into this mix creates a fantastic cocktail of opportunities.“

Headquartered in Durham but with additional facilities in Stanley as well as Bradford in West Yorkshire, the Altec Engineering Group comprises companies covering a wide range of engineering disciplines including CNC precision machining, specialist coatings, design and build of special purpose equipment, electrical and mechanical design, tool-making and specialist hydraulics.

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