Leading lower middle-market private equity firm Huron Capital announced its portfolio company The Exigent Group acquired Smith-Boughan Mechanical along with Electrical Automation Systems (EASI) in a separate deal.
Smith-Boughan and EASI represent the sixth and seventh acquisitions in Exigent since the platform’s initial acquisition in August 2022. And Exigent was launched from Huron’s buy-and-build ExecFactor approach of investing in businesses providing mission-critical services where Huron has deep experience and established playbooks along with a long history of partnering with exceptional CEOs to build premier companies.
Smith-Boughan was founded in 1927 and services Northwest and West Central Ohio. And the company provides a full suite of service offerings, including HVAC, plumbing, controls, sheet metal fabrication, and process piping for a variety of end markets, including industrial, healthcare, government, education, and other commercial customers.
EASI is a building automation, controls, and mechanical services company based in Pasadena, Maryland, with a second office in Salisbury, Maryland. EASI provides services across education, government, and other commercial end markets.
Upon completing these deals, Exigent will have operations in the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Northeast, and Midwest regions of the United States. Exigent continues to seek new partnerships with highly technical, union-powered mechanical and plumbing service companies in the eastern half of the country.
Huron Capital is a leading lower middle-market private equity firm focused on partnering with management teams to build leading service companies. The firm seeks to make control investments in leading service businesses with $20 million to $200 million in revenue. Launched in Detroit in 1999, over the past 25 years, the firm acquired over 275 companies through six control investment funds, managing over $2 billion in capital on behalf of a global institutional investor base. Through the proprietary ExecFactor program, the firm utilizes a proactive, thesis-driven investment process to identify the best potential management teams and investment opportunities in our core sectors.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are proud to join the Exigent Group and understand how Smith-Boughan’s expertise and customer base make us a great fit for the team.”
- Sam Halker, President of Smith-Boughan
“With our roots in controls, HVAC, and mechanical services and shared vision for growth with Exigent leadership, we are uniquely positioned for future success in our market and in collaboration with the other Exigent companies.”
- Jeff Ashe, President of EASI
“We are preparing to embark on our third year of growth and with the support of the Huron team, Exigent is poised to continue our service and geographic expansion. I am excited to welcome Sam and Jeff to the team and leverage our combined expertise and best practices to continue building the best group in mechanical services.”
- Peter van Niekerk, CEO of Exigent
“Exigent’s new partners, Smith-Boughan and EASI, enable the Company to better serve its customers and capture new market opportunities. Together, we’re positioned to leverage our combined expertise to keep large, critical facility operations running optimally and efficiently.”
- Jim Mahoney, Managing Partner at Huron
“These acquisitions accelerate our strategy of being a leading, service-forward mechanical services company. The partnerships with Smith-Boughan and EASI further strengthen our position and allow us to deliver great value to our employees, customers, and other stakeholders in current markets, in addition to providing expansion into the platform’s fourth region.”
- Cale Kaczmarek, Principal at Huron
