Industry/Sector: Medical Device Manufacturing

Deal Type: M&A – Sell Side Advisory

FourBridges Team: Chris Rowe

Client Profile: Based in Milford, Connecticut with operations in Memphis Tennessee, JKB was a leading precision contract manufacturer in the orthopedic and medical device industry, providing design, engineering, prototyping and production services to original equipment manufacturers. JKB manufactured a broad range of spinal implants such as bone screws, rods, nails, plates, hooks and connectors used in orthopedic procedures.

Client Objective: The Company was owned by its founder, his son who was the CEO and had led the business for several years, and an industry veteran who served as COO. The founder was no longer active in the business and desired full liquidity for his ownership. The CEO and COO desired to remain with the business while maximizing the value of their ownership interests.

The Challenge: Shortly after FourBridges was engaged, the company’s largest customer dramatically reduced its purchases from JKB for reasons completely outside of the company’s control. JKB’s revenue fell by roughly 50% in one year.

The Process: FourBridges worked with management in an advisory role over a period of 16 months as management methodically rebuilt the company’s value. Through strategic planning and execution, JKB won new accounts, diversified its customer base and proactively addressed other business issues that lowered the risk profile of the company. As FourBridges and JKB were finalizing a complete set of marketing materials, the company was approached by a strategic buyer.

The Result: The Company was sold to Sandvik, an $11.3B publicly-traded Swedish corporation providing highly engineered tools, products, materials and machinery. As a result, the founder, CEO and COO each achieved their respective goals of value and liquidity.

FourBridges Capital Advisors is a middle market investment bank providing sell-side, buy-side, capital raising, restructuring, and strategic advisory services primarily to closely-held and family-owned businesses. FourBridges is based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and serves clients in cities across the Southeast, including Atlanta, Nashville, Birmingham, Memphis, Knoxville and Huntsville.

Past performance is no guarantee of future results, and there can be no guarantee that these results will be duplicated in the future. Any testimonials presented herein may not be representative of the experience of other clients.