DavyMarkham sold to Indian EPC group
1 Mar 2010
Sheffield, UK – DavyMarkham has been acquired by India’s leading engineering procurement and construction company, Hindustan Dorr Oliver (HDO) Ltd, a subsidiary of IVRCL Infrastructures & Projects Ltd, which is involved in engineered solutions, technologies and EPC installations in liquid-solid separation applications.
The Sheffield-based, heavy engineering concern’s managing director, Kevin Parkin, and Financial Director, Duncan Hay, will continue in their current roles, along with the management team.
DavyMarkham is involved in the design, manufacture and assembly of large equipment used in the mining, quarrying, power generation, oil, gas and nuclear sectors; it supplies international markets with tunnelling and mine hoisting equipment, and also undertakes the machining of individual components weighing up to 350 tonnes. It offers engineering capabilities for extremely large turnkey projects, managing the whole process from engineering design, fabrication, machining to installation and commissioning of heavy and complex components and assemblies.
Over the years, The 180-year-old manufacturing company has supplied the largest-ever steel mill stand for China, tower saddles for suspension bridges in Hong Kong and San Francisco, cutter heads for a variety of tunnelling projects including Niagara Falls hydroelectric project and railroad tunnels in China.
In the mining industry, DavyMarkham has supplied more than 300 hoists across the world for a variety of environments, from the sub-zero winters of Northern Canada to the tropical temperatures of the gold coast of Ghana. Within the UK, it has worked on such landmark projects as the Channel Tunnel, London’s Heathrow Airport Control Tower, Thames Barrier and Underground tunnels, Gateshead Millennium Bridge and British Coal mine winders.
IVRCL is a major player in the Indian infrastructure industry, with a group turnover exceeding $1 billion, and it owns a controlling stake in HDO. The majority-owned subsidiary aims to expand into new sectors, using DavyMarkham’s corporate credentials and engineering expertise; it intends to leverage on this expertise and gain a foothold amongst domestic heavy engineering clients.
HDO intends to invest strategically in new plant and equipment at the Darnall works, continue the company’s apprentice training scheme and expand DavyMarkham’s sales and marketing infrastructure, in order to tap into opportunities in India. The IVRCL Group will introduce the Sheffield-based company to its existing international contacts, added a DavyMarkham statement.
HDO along with its parent is financially very strong, very growth orientated and dedicates itself to continuous improvement in all fields of its business,” said Parkin. “There are considerable synergies between ourselves and Hindustan Dorr-Oliver, while IVRCL’s commercial aspirations in markets like nuclear energy match ours perfectly.
“DavyMarkham was on the verge of closure four years ago, but with the financial support of our buyout partners, Endless, we have been able to turn around the business and make it an attractive acquisition prospect,” he adds. “Working closely with the workforce, management, unions, suppliers, the bank and local council, we have introduced huge improvements and efficiencies into the business and we are now facing an exciting future. I cannot fault the support Endless has given to us and would recommend them as the perfect partner in a turnaround financing transaction.”
HDO is exploring business opportunities in oil & gas, power and uranium processing and this month announced moves into the nuclear power plant sector. It also intends to build DavyMarkham’s presence in the oil, gas and power transmission markets, borrowing upon the group’s expertise and industry contacts.
With over 7500 employees and 15,000 temporary workers, IVRCL is engaged in the development and execution of engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) and lump sum turnkey projects in infrastructure sectors such as power, water & environment, transportation and construction. Last year, it posted a turnover of $1.07 billion, with clients including the Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd of India, Nuclear Power Corporation of India, the Airports Authority, Indian Oil Corp. and Tata Steel.
