The Gores Group carves out Avure

The Gores Group has completed its acquisition of Avure Technologies, carving out the Flow International subsidiary in a $15.3 million (€12.7 million) deal. The transaction was first announced at the beginning of October.

The divestiture was largely expected from Flow, which has been seeking buyers for the unit for nearly a year. The publicly traded company has been undergoing a strategic reorganisation, and was the recipient of a $65 million PIPE investment in March. The divestiture will allow Flow to focus on its core ultra-high pressure water-pump activity.

The Kent, Washington-based Avure Technologies is a manufacturer of high-pressure presses for the food and industrial markets. The presses use water pressure to eliminate food borne pathogens, such as Salmonella and E. coli.

The acquisition gives Gores control of the Fresher Under Pressure and industrial press businesses of Flow International, in addition to its 51 percent stake in Flow Autoclave Systems, a joint venture with Snap-tite Corp.

Gores’ president of mergers and acquisitions, Steve Yager, commented on the increasing deployment of high-pressure presses in the food industry, and noted that Gores intends to position the company to capitalise on that growth. “Gores plans to work together with management to maintain the company’s pre-eminent position and also provide the support required to explore new growth opportunities for the business,” he said in a statement.

Meanwhile, even as Avure is based in Washington, the company has a significant presence overseas and maintains an office in Sweden. The deal for Gores was led by its European head Nadim Nsouli.

Gores is currently investing out of its inaugural fund Gores Capital Partners LP, a $400 million vehicle closed in November of 2003.

Separately, the Los Angeles-based Gores Group has also apparently altered its name. The firm had been operating under the handle Gores Technology Group since its founding, but with this latest announcement, the firm has pulled the “technology” affiliation out of its name.

Whether this represents a further expansion of the group’s focus beyond tech and tech-related businesses is unknown. Previously, the firm has described itself as targeting the “technology and telecommunications” sectors. In this latest deal, the firm’s press release added the broadly defined “business services” space to its core areas of expertise.

Calls to Gores were not returned by press time.

In addition to Los Angeles, Gores also maintains offices in Boulder, Colorado, New York, Zurich and London.