Managers take a stake in CompAir

More details have emerged about the deal in which Invensys sold its CompAir compressor subsidiary to Alchemy Partners for a token £1. Four members of CompAir`s management, led by chief executive Nick Sanders, have taken a personal stake in the company, with Invensys retaining an 18% share.

Invensys brought in Sanders from TRW Aeronautical Systems at the start of the year to revitalise CompAir and to help find a buyer for the business. "Invensys believed that CompAir needed fundamental change and that is what I came in to achieve," he reports. "The sale came quicker than we had anticipated, but Alchemy saw the potential, recognised what we could achieve with the company and, essentially, backed the business plan."

Sanders argues that the managers` involvement in the business emphasizes their confidence in it. "It`s no secret that there had been speculation that CompAir would cease to exist as a manufacturing operation," he says. "My colleagues and I would not have taken a personal stake in the business if we did not believe in its future as a major player in the market."

A complete restructuring of the business is now under way. CompAir will become more aggressive and more customer-focussed, Sanders reports. "It is a big name that has been punching below its weight, but now that the uncertainty about the ownership of the business has been removed, there is a very positive feel to the company"..