Key Takeaways
- • Truelink Capital acquired Horwitz, a 720-person MEP services provider founded in 1918, from Svoboda Capital Partners, marking Truelink's 12th platform investment since its 2022 founding and the firm's entry into the commercial MEP sector.
- • Horwitz operates across the Twin Cities and Midwest, serving high-growth end markets including data centers, semiconductor fabrication, healthcare, and medtech, with a diversified revenue base spanning service/maintenance (recurring), retrofits/upgrades, and new installations.
- • The U.S. MEP services market is projected to grow from $33 billion in 2025 to $47 billion by 2031 at a 6.3% annual growth rate, driven by federal energy-efficiency incentives (heat-pump retrofits up 40% since 2024) and expansion in semiconductor and data center construction.
- • Truelink closed its second fund in March 2026 with $2 billion in capital—exceeding its $1.5 billion target and reaching its hard cap in under three months—providing substantial dry powder for add-on acquisitions and operational scaling under Horwitz as an anchor platform.
- • CEO Matt Dekkers and the existing management team retain equity ownership and will continue leading operations, maintaining continuity while leveraging Truelink's operational playbook and M&A capabilities to build a diversified MEP services platform.
Summary
Truelink Capital has completed its acquisition of Horwitz, a Minneapolis-based mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) services provider, from Svoboda Capital Partners. The transaction represents Truelink's 12th platform investment since the Los Angeles-based firm's founding in 2022 and establishes the private equity investor's entry point into the commercial and industrial MEP services sector. Horwitz, which was founded in 1918 and is headquartered in New Hope, Minnesota, employs 720 people and operates primarily across the Twin Cities and broader Midwest region.
Horwitz's service portfolio spans three core revenue streams: recurring service and maintenance contracts, retrofit and upgrade work, and new installations. Its technical capabilities cover HVAC systems, plumbing, electrical work, and building automation, serving customers in data centers, medtech, semiconductor fabrication, healthcare, and advanced manufacturing. This customer diversification across technically demanding and capital-intensive end markets provided the strategic appeal for Truelink. CEO Matt Dekkers, who joined Horwitz in early 2023 and assumed the chief executive role on January 1, 2024, will continue to lead the business with the existing management team retaining an ownership stake in the recapitalized partnership.
The MEP services market presents substantial growth dynamics. According to Mordor Intelligence, the U.S. MEP services market was valued at approximately $33 billion in 2025 and is expected to reach $35 billion in 2026 and $47 billion by 2031—representing a compound annual growth rate of 6.3%. Retrofit and renovation work accounted for the largest revenue share in 2025, accelerated by federal energy-efficiency incentives that have driven heat-pump and energy-efficient HVAC retrofits up roughly 40% since 2024. Healthcare facility expansions, semiconductor fabrication projects, and data center construction—all core Horwitz customer segments—are further bolstering demand across the sector.
Truelink's acquisition strategy emphasizes pairing capital with operational improvements and add-on M&A. The firm closed its second fund in March 2026 with $2 billion in capital, exceeding its $1.5 billion target and reaching its hard cap in under three months, providing ample firepower for this strategy. Svoboda Capital, which acquired Horwitz in March 2022, had itself completed one add-on acquisition—the November 2024 purchase of Preferred Electric, a Minneapolis-based electrical contractor—establishing a pattern of tuck-in consolidation likely to continue under Truelink ownership. Horwitz's recurring service and maintenance revenue base offers stability against project-based retrofit and new construction exposure, positioning the company as an effective anchor platform for building a scaled, diversified MEP services business. William Blair served as financial advisor to the transaction parties.
Horwitz's service portfolio spans three core revenue streams: recurring service and maintenance contracts, retrofit and upgrade work, and new installations. Its technical capabilities cover HVAC systems, plumbing, electrical work, and building automation, serving customers in data centers, medtech, semiconductor fabrication, healthcare, and advanced manufacturing. This customer diversification across technically demanding and capital-intensive end markets provided the strategic appeal for Truelink. CEO Matt Dekkers, who joined Horwitz in early 2023 and assumed the chief executive role on January 1, 2024, will continue to lead the business with the existing management team retaining an ownership stake in the recapitalized partnership.
The MEP services market presents substantial growth dynamics. According to Mordor Intelligence, the U.S. MEP services market was valued at approximately $33 billion in 2025 and is expected to reach $35 billion in 2026 and $47 billion by 2031—representing a compound annual growth rate of 6.3%. Retrofit and renovation work accounted for the largest revenue share in 2025, accelerated by federal energy-efficiency incentives that have driven heat-pump and energy-efficient HVAC retrofits up roughly 40% since 2024. Healthcare facility expansions, semiconductor fabrication projects, and data center construction—all core Horwitz customer segments—are further bolstering demand across the sector.
Truelink's acquisition strategy emphasizes pairing capital with operational improvements and add-on M&A. The firm closed its second fund in March 2026 with $2 billion in capital, exceeding its $1.5 billion target and reaching its hard cap in under three months, providing ample firepower for this strategy. Svoboda Capital, which acquired Horwitz in March 2022, had itself completed one add-on acquisition—the November 2024 purchase of Preferred Electric, a Minneapolis-based electrical contractor—establishing a pattern of tuck-in consolidation likely to continue under Truelink ownership. Horwitz's recurring service and maintenance revenue base offers stability against project-based retrofit and new construction exposure, positioning the company as an effective anchor platform for building a scaled, diversified MEP services business. William Blair served as financial advisor to the transaction parties.
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