Global Fire and Life Safety Engineering Leader Jensen Hughes Acquires UK- and Ireland-Based Fire Forensics Investigation Firm

This strategic acquisition expands Jensen Hughes' global market leadership by strengthening its ability to provide an immediate fire investigation response for any organization in the UK or Ireland and broadens the firm's forensic capabilities worldwide.

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Jensen Hughes

Dec 12, 2019, 11:13 ET

BALTIMORE, Dec. 12, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Jensen Hughes, a global leader in safety, security and risk-based engineering and consulting, announced today its acquisition of IFIC Forensics (IFIC), a leading UK- and Ireland-based forensics firm specializing in fire, explosion, chemical spill and water escape investigations across marine and other commercial industries.

IFIC is the most recent strategic acquisition by Jensen Hughes, a portfolio company of Gryphon Investors, that reflects the company's long-term commitment to deliver its integrated, end-to-end services worldwide wherever its global clients require support. The acquisition enhances Jensen Hughes' robust, global fire forensics capabilities and its ability to provide an immediate response to fire-related crises confronting any organization in the UK, Ireland and Europe. It also strengthens Jensen Hughes' ability to help clients in the marine market understand their fire-related risks and implement global best practices to manage these in a prevention-oriented and cost-effective manner.

In addition to its investments in many markets worldwide, Jensen Hughes' focus on the UK and Ireland market includes its 2018 acquisition of the UK firm Jeremy Gardner Associates (JGA) as well as its 2017 appointment of Dr. Richard Stahl to lead the international forensics practice in the UK.

"Professor James Lygate and his IFIC team have built an incredible business through a network of experts and client service. We are honored to have them join our team. World-class specialists like this team help us support our clients' fire and life safety requirements wherever they operate in the world with integrated, end-to-end solutions," says Raj Arora, CEO, Jensen Hughes.

IFIC was founded in 1970 and is owned and managed by Professor James Lygate, who joined the firm in 1991. As Chairman and Principal Fire Investigator, he has expanded IFIC's spectrum of fire investigative services across many forensic engineering disciplines to meet its clients' failure analysis requirements.

"Over almost 50 years, we have built a scalable business around our clients' needs. As those grew geographically and across forensic disciplines, we knew we needed to scale beyond our core team," said Professor Lygate. "Jensen Hughes is just as deeply committed to technical excellence as we have been since our founding and its market leadership, global scale and deep bench of scientists, engineers and consultants open up for us tremendous opportunities to better serve our clients. We're eager to join the Jensen Hughes team and provide an even more holistic solution."

For more information, visit jensenhughes.com or ific.co.uk.

About Jensen Hughes

Jensen Hughes is a global leader in safety, security and risk-based engineering and consulting. Every day, a team of 1,300+ engineers, consultants and scientists develop and deliver innovative and cost-effective solutions to a global client base involving fire protection systems design and analysis, code consulting, emergency management services, security consulting, forensic engineering, fire research, risk-informed applications, probabilistic risk assessments, development and testing, commissioning and construction services. Operating from 90+ offices throughout the world, Jensen Hughes consulting teams have delivered more than 40,000 projects in all markets across industries. Jensen Hughes is a portfolio company of Gryphon Investors, a leading private equity firm focused on profitably growing and competitively enhancing middle-market companies in partnership with experienced management teams. For more information, visit www.jensenhughes.com.

About IFIC Forensics

Founded in 1970, IFIC Forensics is a market-leading forensic investigation firm, comprised of highly experienced consultants committed to delivering technical excellence for clients across the full spectrum of services. Operating throughout the UK, Ireland and overseas, our clients trust us to respond rapidly and deliver conclusive reports, robust evidence and expert testimony of the highest technical standard. For more information, visit https://www.ific.co.uk/.

About Gryphon Investors

Based in San Francisco, Gryphon Investors (www.gryphoninvestors.com) is a leading private equity firm focused on profitably growing and competitively enhancing middle-market companies in partnership with experienced management. The firm has managed over $5.0 billion of equity investments and capital since 1997. Gryphon targets making equity investments of $100 million to $300 million in portfolio companies with sales ranging from approximately $100 million to $500 million. Gryphon prioritizes investment opportunities where it can form strong partnerships with owners and executives to build leading companies, utilizing Gryphon's capital, specialized professional resources, and operational expertise. For more information, visit www.gryphoninvestors.com.

SOURCE Jensen Hughes