Commonwealth Dynamics, Inc.

27 Nov Commonwealth Dynamics, Inc.

The Company led the design and construction of hundreds of the most sophisticated chimney and stack projects around the globe including five of the tallest 20 chimneys in the world.  The company provides engineering and contracting services for the design, construction and maintenance of tall structures, primarily for the power industry including steel stacks, concrete chimneys, combustion turbine exhaust systems, silos and cooling towers throughout the world.

What made the business attractive to buyers?

• Recognized leader in chimney industry over 30 years
• Worldwide relationships with power producers in both renewable and traditional energy
• World renowned team of engineers, project managers and field personnel
• In depth understanding of requirements for international tall structure building

Challenges:

• Self funded owner competing against multi-national companies
• Decreasing opportunities for US based work

Why did the Owner want to sell?

In his early 60s, the owner wanted to decrease the risk to him and his family in having most of his net worth tied to the business.  At the same time, he saw an opportunity to partner with a deep pocketed investor who could fund large international projects that the company was well positioned to construct.

Beacon’s Role and Results:

Beacon Equity Advisors assisted with the valuation, marketing, deal negotiations and due diligence necessary to bring about a deal with a publicly traded company based in Spain and projects and entities on all five major continents.

The Process:

Beacon marketed the business for approximately nine months to identify private equity firms with the industry knowledge and strategic buyers with strong financials throughout the world.

Beacon worked closely with approximately 50 buyers who showed interest after reviewing the Profile.

Beacon worked with the seller to narrow the field to 10 interested buyers who submitted an indication of interest letter (IOI).

Two buyer groups were invited to company headquarters for a meeting with management over two days.

Beacon worked with the seller’s CPA and attorneys to negotiate with the public company’s CFO, based in Spain, and attorneys to complete a deal that provided the seller with cash, the elimination of personal risk associated with bank debt and an additional earnings opportunities in the form of an employment contract and earn out from the recapitalized company.

The buyer was chosen based on the quality of their deal structure as well as their access to the capital necessary for the company to compete for large chimney projects with long completion times and significant profitability.

About Beacon Equity Advisors – Since 1985 Beacon Equity Advisors, a leading New England M&A advisory firm with offices in eight key cities, including Boston, MA and Manchester, NH has represented owners selling closely held businesses such as Commonwealth Dynamics of Portsmouth, NH.  Commonwealth Dynamics is a world leader in the design and construction of super structure towers and chimneys having built five of the twenty tallest in the world.  The company headquartered in the US had operations in Europe, Asia, Africa and South America.  Beacon Equity Advisors’ experience selling companies in this space enabled them to tell an engaging story about this unique business which had only eight competitors world wide.  Highlighting key enterprise attributes enhanced the company’s value as Beacon identified prospective buyers who were able to clearly recognize synergistic opportunities. By matching the right buyer with the right seller, shareholders were able to realize an above market value multiple in the sale of their business. Beacon represented the Board of Directors and Shareholders in identifying the buyer, negotiating deal terms and brokering the transaction with a public company in Europe.