The UK’s leading provider of Management Due Diligence, The Quinn Partnership, is pleased to congratulate Inflexion Private Equity on the sale of SMD, the world’s leading designer and manufacturer of subsea vehicle systems. Valuing the company at £120m, Inflexion generated a return of 2.2x. SMD has been bought by Zhuzhou CSR Times Electric Company Limited, a joint stock company incorporated in the People’s Republic of China (the “PRC”) whose shares are listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited.

With an innovative and market-leading product offering, SMD leveraged Inflexion’s experience in internationalising businesses to further extend its footprint and open sales offices in Singapore, USA and Brazil, significantly expanding its range of customers across complimentary sectors. In addition, Inflexion’s Digital Director identified the opportunity to introduce an intelligent spare parts and servicing model to optimise the operational effectiveness of the ROVs and facilitate future earnings through monetising the data which they capture.

John Hartz, Managing Partner at Inflexion said, “SMD was a truly entrepreneurial business when we invested. Working in partnership with the management team we helped strengthen the board, professionalise manufacturing and expand into new markets whilst maintaining SMD’s innovative edge. SMD is a unique asset in the global subsea market and we wish the team every success under Chinese ownership.”

Andrew Hodgson, CEO of SMD said, “I am proud of the business SMD is today. Inflexion has been an active and supportive investor with whose help we have diversified our customer base and the markets which we serve. SMD is now well positioned for the future.”

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