Engineering group CPM bought by German lift specialists Langer + Laumann

Transaction advised on by Brabners Deal Advisory

Trafford Park engineering group CPM has been acquired by German group Langer + Laumann (L+L) in a move that will create a Europe-wide specialist in lift and elevator repair and maintenance.

L+L, backed by Nordic private equity investor Norvestor, has taken a majority stake in Complete Plant Maintenance Engineering (CPM), whose subsidiaries include Northern Drives & Controls (NDC), NDC Inc, NDC Deutschland & NDC Spain.

CPM serves an international client base, with key focuses including elevators and solar panels. Its services include 24/7 electro-mechanical repair, replacement and maintenance services for specialist electronic drive systems.

L+L, based in Steinfurt near the Dutch border, focuses on elevator aftercare including elevator door drives and control unit kits for repair, modernisation and maintenance.

The combined group will have revenues of some €40m and will offer “a one-stop offering for the modernisation, repair and maintenance of critical elevator systems”.

CPM’s co-owners David and Jordan Griffin will continue to lead the business alongside Norvestor and L+L management, and have reinvested into the combined group.

David Griffin, founder and managing director at CPM, said: “We started CPM in 1993 with a clear focus on responsive, around-the-clock engineering support, and that’s still what defines the business today. Joining Langer + Laumann is a natural next step – it gives us access to a broader technical capability and a stronger European platform, while preserving the service-led culture our team and our customers value.

“Selling a business you’ve built from the ground up is never a small decision, but we couldn’t have asked for a better partner to take it forward. Jordan and I are reinvesting because we genuinely believe the best chapter is still ahead.”

Brabners Deal Advisory led on M&A advice for CPM’s shareholders, with head of deal advisory Paula McGrath and Nicole Turton negotiating the deal’s price, structure and heads of terms. The team also managed the due diligence process.

Brabners’ corporate legal team, led by partner Daniel Hayhurst and Emma Norman-Jones, advised on the disposal and shareholders’ reinvestment into the combined group, working alongside German law firm, Noerr Partnerschaftsgesellschaft mbB.

CPM has a long relationship with Brabners, with the law firm’s partner David Maples working on the firm’s original management buyout in 1993.

Paula McGrath, principal, and head of Brabners Deal Advisory, said: “CPM is exactly the kind of business European private equity is hunting for right now: a reliable, founder-led industrial with international reach, recurring service revenues and genuine technical depth.

“We’ve worked with David and the CPM team since the original MBO, so we came into the sale process with a deep understanding of the business and what made it attractive to international buyers. That continuity helped us move quickly through what was a complex, cross-border transaction and protect what mattered most to the shareholders. We look forward to watching the business’ continued development under its new structure.”