LONDON, UK: discoverIE Group plc (LSE: DSCV), a leading international designer and manufacturer of customised electronics for industrial applications, announced the acquisition of the CDT Group.

CDT Group, which is a designer and manufacturer of customised plastic enclosures for circuit boards, membrane keypads and associated electronics components, has been acquired for a total cash consideration of £5.0m on a debt free, cash free basis, before expenses, funded from the Group’s existing debt facilities.

The acquisition will be immediately enhancing to Group underlying earnings. Proforma Group gearing at 31 March 2022 including the CDT acquisition is 0.7x, well below our target range of 1.5x to 2.0x, a bourse filing said.

CDT, based in Northamptonshire, UK, will be integrated with the Group’s Contour business cluster within the Sensing & Connectivity division, whilst retaining its distinct brand identity.

The acquisition will enhance the cluster’s engineering capabilities, further integrating custom electronic designs with their enclosures, enabling more highly differentiated opportunities. Its main markets are medical, renewables, emergency vehicles and industrial companies.

The business, which was resilient through Covid, reported revenues for the year ended 31 December 2021 of £2.9m generating an underlying operating profit of £0.8m and an underlying operating margin of 28%.

Nick Jefferies, Group Chief Executive of discoverIE, said: “The acquisition of the CDT group continues our strategy of building a high quality, higher margin international group that designs and manufactures customised electronics. CDT will be integrated with our existing Contour business enabling more complex and integrated designs as well as providing CDT with access to our wider base of customers and with it, new sales opportunities. We are delighted to welcome CDT and its employees into the Group.

With a clear strategy focused on long-term, high quality growth markets, a diversified customer base, a strong pipeline of acquisition opportunities, the Group is well positioned to make further progress on its key priorities.”

discoverIE is listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange and is a member of the FTSE250, classified within the Electrical Components and Equipment subsector.