Key Takeaways
- • Arlington Capital Partners has completed its acquisition of Gooch & Housego PLC (G&H), a UK-headquartered photonics and optical components maker with approximately 1,000 employees, taking the company private.
- • Arlington plans to fund organic growth, including capacity expansions at G&H's US and UK manufacturing centers, with the aim of supporting its aerospace & defense business while strengthening industrial and life sciences operations.
- • The deal was announced by Arlington via Business Wire; the press release does not disclose the purchase price or financial terms.
- • G&H, founded in 1948, serves aerospace & defense, industrial and life sciences markets with precision optics, fiber optics and thin-film coatings.
- • J.P. Morgan advised Arlington and Rothschild and Investec advised G&H, with Kirkland & Ellis and Burges Salmon acting as legal counsel to the respective parties.
Summary
Arlington Capital Partners, a Washington, D.C.-area private investment firm focused on government-regulated industries, has completed its acquisition of Gooch & Housego PLC, according to a Business Wire announcement. G&H is headquartered in Ilminster, England, employs approximately 1,000 people across the UK, US and other locations, and designs and manufactures advanced photonic and optical components and subsystems. Its technologies include precision optics, acousto- and electro-optics, fiber optics and thin-film coatings, which are used in directed energy and counter-UAS systems, GPS-denied navigation, semiconductor fabrication, subsea and space communications, and medical and diagnostic instrumentation.
The transaction is intended to support G&H's expansion as a private company. Arlington said it plans to invest in organic growth, including capacity expansions at existing manufacturing sites in the US and UK, which it expects to support continued growth in G&H's aerospace & defense business while strengthening its industrial and life sciences segments. Peter Manos, Managing Partner at Arlington, described G&H as occupying a unique position at the intersection of advanced photonics, precision manufacturing and important technology applications. Charlie Peppiatt, G&H's Chief Executive Officer, said that private ownership would give the company greater flexibility to invest in people, technology and manufacturing and to pursue acquisitions at scale. Ben Ramundo, Managing Director at Arlington, noted that G&H has more than 75 years of technical history and that the firm aims to build a world-class photonics and optics platform.
The press release does not disclose the purchase price. J.P. Morgan advised Arlington, with Kirkland & Ellis as legal counsel. Rothschild and Investec advised G&H, and Burges Salmon served as its legal adviser. Arlington states it has invested in more than 200 companies since its 1999 inception, has raised over $14 billion in committed capital, and is currently investing from its $6 billion Fund VII.
The transaction is intended to support G&H's expansion as a private company. Arlington said it plans to invest in organic growth, including capacity expansions at existing manufacturing sites in the US and UK, which it expects to support continued growth in G&H's aerospace & defense business while strengthening its industrial and life sciences segments. Peter Manos, Managing Partner at Arlington, described G&H as occupying a unique position at the intersection of advanced photonics, precision manufacturing and important technology applications. Charlie Peppiatt, G&H's Chief Executive Officer, said that private ownership would give the company greater flexibility to invest in people, technology and manufacturing and to pursue acquisitions at scale. Ben Ramundo, Managing Director at Arlington, noted that G&H has more than 75 years of technical history and that the firm aims to build a world-class photonics and optics platform.
The press release does not disclose the purchase price. J.P. Morgan advised Arlington, with Kirkland & Ellis as legal counsel. Rothschild and Investec advised G&H, and Burges Salmon served as its legal adviser. Arlington states it has invested in more than 200 companies since its 1999 inception, has raised over $14 billion in committed capital, and is currently investing from its $6 billion Fund VII.
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