AE Industrial Partners has sold Altus Fire and Life Safety to Apax Partners

Altus Fire and Life Safety

Headquartered in New York, Altus Fire and Life Safety is a leading full-service provider of regulatory-mandated fire and life safety services to the commercial office, multi-family, medical and education sectors serving the Northeast U.S. With operations in 12 states, Altus has developed longstanding relationships with a diversified group of blue-chip customers. Altus’ end-to-end capabilities include testing and inspection, service and repair, drills and training, monitoring, upgrade and installation services across product categories including fire alarm, sprinkler and security systems.

The Deal

AE Industrial Partners’ initial investment in the Altus platform came via the acquisition of Cross-Fire & Security Co. in 2021. During the partnership, Altus experienced strong organic growth due to its competitive differentiation rooted in deep fire alarm service expertise. Altus supplemented its organic growth profile by fully integrating eight add-on acquisitions that significantly enhanced the company’s service capabilities, geographic reach and operating infrastructure. With Altus’ impressive growth, competitive differentiation and inbound interest, AE Industrial turned to Lincoln International to find the next partner for Altus. Lincoln leveraged its industry experience, robust buyer relationships and process acumen to generate multiple attractive options for shareholders. Apax Partners emerged as the ideal partner for management with its strong interest in the sector and experience scaling platforms.

Our Perspective

Luke Webb, Lincoln International Managing Director who led the transaction, commented, “We continue to see strong interest in companies providing recurring services underpinned by regulatory-driven demand in the fire and life safety sector. Altus is a differentiated platform with deep expertise and technical knowledge in fire alarm services. We look forward to Altus’ future success in its new partnership with Apax.”

AE Industrial Partners

AE Industrial is a private investment firm with $6.2 billion of assets under management focused on highly specialized markets including national security, aerospace and industrial services. AE Industrial has completed more than 130 investments in market-leading companies that benefit from its deep industry knowledge, operating experience and network of relationships across the sectors where the firm invests. With a commitment to driving value creation in partnership with the management teams of its portfolio companies, AE Industrial invests across private equity, venture capital and aerospace leasing.

Apax Partners

Apax is a leading global private equity advisory firm. For more than 50 years, Apax has worked to inspire growth and ideas that transform businesses. The firm has raised and advised funds with aggregate commitments of almost $80 billion. Apax invests in companies across four global sectors of tech, services, healthcare and internet / consumer. These funds provide long-term equity financing to build and strengthen world-class companies.

Connect with a Senior Team Member
Lincoln’s industry expertise, process execution and strategic advice proved invaluable in the transaction process. Lincoln’s unique insights into the market drawn from several recent transactions involving fire and life safety services led to an exceptional outcome for Altus and its shareholders.
Charlie Santos-Buch
Partner at AE Industrial Partners

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