BGF invests £10 million in Oxfordshire-based technology business

BGF – the UK’s most active growth capital investor – has announced a £10m investment in Polar Technology Management Group, an Oxfordshire-based business that manufactures high-performance carbon and metal components for the automotive, medical and aerospace/defence sectors.

BGF’s investment will be used to support Polar Technology Management Group’s planned move into a state-of-the-art 100,000 sq ft facility at Horizon Technology Park in Eynsham, Oxfordshire, doubling the size of its production capacity and creating over 110 new jobs in the next two years. The new facility is expected to be fully up and running during 2021.

Polar Technology Management Group was established in 2012 by Scott Roberts and Mike Dewhirst. Currently employing over 200 people, the business designs, develops and manufactures products and technology based around advanced composite materials, emerging metal processes and metallic fabrications.

With a focus on high-tech R&D, Polar Technology Management Group’s key clients include a range of technology specialist companies in the medical and aerospace industries.

The company is highly embedded in the automotive sector, working with F1 manufacturers, whilst also producing parts for high-performance ‘hypercars’.

Roberts, co-founder of Polar Technology Management Group, said: “We are delighted to welcome BGF into a partnership that has secured an injection of £10m of fresh funding into Polar Technology Management Group. This will enable us to grow faster, support our customers better and provide job security to our existing team of highly skilled, dedicated, employees. The deal will also create hundreds of new jobs in the West Oxfordshire area over the next three years with investment planned in clean, sustainable, technologies supporting our expanding manufacturing base.”

Greg Norman, investor at BGF, led the deal alongside Liam Pursall, Jack Teasdale and BGF’s head of manufacturing Mark Bryant.

Norman said: “We have known the team at Polar Technology Management Group for some time and seen them deliver year-on-year. We are excited to partner with them to support the long-term growth of the business. The company has an impressive management team in Scott, Mike and Dale, and some very exciting technologies both already delivered and in development. We look forward to the growth of this exciting company as it looks to the future.”

The advisers to the transaction were:

BGF:

• Legals: Osborne Clarke (Robert Wood and Robert Pook)
• Due Diligence: James Cowper Kreston (Alex Nicholson and Michael Atkinson)

Polar Technology Management Group:

• Legals: Charles Russell Speechlys (William Nash and Svetlana Kisyova)
• Tax: Whitley Stimpson (Ian Parker and Owen Kiffin)