Liverpool ventilation firm VSS acquires business in Surrey, boosting revenues by £1m
From its North Liverpool base VSS provides ductwork and air conditioning cleaning and maintenance and fire compliance testing and has bought Camberley-based Sani-Duct Installations. Tony McDonough reports
Liverpool-based national ventilation hygiene and system surveying company, Ventilation Surveys & Services Ltd (VSS) has acquired a Surrey-based business.
From its North Liverpool base VSS provides ductwork and air conditioning cleaning and maintenance and fire compliance testing for businesses throughout the UK and clients include Pizza Hut, Moto, Marks & Spencer, Sodexo and a number of NHS trusts.
Now the firm has acquired Sani-Duct Installations, which employs 15 staff in Camberley, which specialises in kitchen extraction servicing will expand its client-base, particularly in the south. VSS will retain the office and its 15 staff.
“We have known Sani-Duct for around 20 years, through trade associations and it came to our attention that owners Linda Jackson and Brian Hargreaves were looking for someone suitable to take on the business,” VSS chief executive, George Friend, said.
“The deal was finalised in December and we are delighted that Linda and Brian will be staying on during the two-year merger process. We will be retaining all staff and contracts, bringing our current team to 90 and increasing our revenue by around £1m a year.”
Staff from the two businesses met for the first time last week, at VSS’ annual team meeting, held at Liverpool’s Jury’s Inn.
Since relocating to the city’s Sandon Industrial Estate four years ago, VSS has grown its team by more than 50 staff, and this year expects and this year expects this figure to increase to 100.
This will include an additional six employees in Northern Ireland to take on a new ventilation cleaning and fire compliance contract for the NHS.
“Moving to Liverpool from Hertford gave us the foundations to grow, particularly thanks to the regional funding we successfully applied for,” George said. “It is a fantastic hub for us, and particularly convenient for our Northern Ireland engineers and customers.”