The information on this page comes from the UK Activity Report.
Click here for further details

Penn Pharmaceuticals, the Tredegar-based manufacturer of bespoke unlicensed drugs with 170 staff, has been acquired by Celgene of the US for £62m, and its service division has undergone a secondary management buy-out. 31-Dec-2004 Tanfield Group has acquired ClickHere, the Teesside-based IT training and management development company with offices in Sheffield, Billingham and Stanley. 30-Dec-2004 Phonetics, the Lowestoft-based call centre with 120 staff, has been acquired by It's Your Group, the operator of call centres in Leeds and India for banks and other financial institutions. 30-Dec-2004 Exel has acquired Sociedade de Distribuicao e Logistica, the Portuguese pharmaceutical logistics company, for undisclosed terms. 29-Dec-2004 Edinburgh Crystal has acquired Selkirk Glass, the glassware manufacturer with 32 staff. 28-Dec-2004 Lincolnshire Co-operative is to sell its Wights Motor car dealership in Boston to Crystal Motor Group, securing the future of 22 jobs. 27-Dec-2004 Evolutions, the media post-production facility, has undergone a £7m management buy-out backed by Close Venture Management. 27-Dec-2004 Adop of France has sold its Norfolk-based blow mould tooling business to a management buy-out for undisclosed terms, creating a new company called Mouldline. 27-Dec-2004 Cobham has acquired H Koch & Sons, the US manufacturer of life support systems for aircraft, for £225m. 27-Dec-2004 Duke Street Capital has acquired Affinity Healthcare, the operator of psychiatric hospitals in Cheshire and Durham, for up to £75m. 27-Dec-2004 ECI Partners is backing the £20m management buy-out of Bounty, the direct marketing company that targets new mothers. 27-Dec-2004 Filmnight has acquired Apollo, the chain of 65 video shops and 200 franchises, for undisclosed terms. 27-Dec-2004 International Energy Group has acquired the gas transport assets of Scottish Power for £15m. 27-Dec-2004 Holidaybreak has acquired Djoser, the Dutch adventure holidays company, for £16m. 27-Dec-2004 SpringHealth Leisure, the operator of five health clubs in London, has been acquired by Thistledown for £3.4m. 27-Dec-2004 Television Corporation is to sell its Visions outside broadcasting operation to NEP of the US for £17m. 27-Dec-2004 Ulster Television is to acquire Coderidge, the owner of the LMFM radio station in Ireland, for £6.6m. 27-Dec-2004 Avanti Screenmedia has acquired Freelance Media, the provider of Screenmedia services to shopping centres, for £1.9m. 27-Dec-2004 Park Resorts, the operator of caravan parks, has been sold by Close Brothers Private Equity to ABN Amro Capital for £165m. 27-Dec-2004 Blackwall, the Leeds-based supplier of container services to local authorities and waste management companies, is to be acquired by Straight for up to £6.7m. 23-Dec-2004 Huntsworth is to acquire Rose & Kindel, the US-based public relations company, for an initial £1.7m. 23-Dec-2004 Warrington Slate, the builders' merchant, has been sold for £5.5m, with the Warrington site being acquired by Hendricks and the Bury site by Travis Perkins. 23-Dec-2004 Northern Venture Managers has backed a £3m management buy-out at Direct Valeting, the provider of valeting services to the motor trade. 23-Dec-2004 Reg Vardy has acquired the Priory Motor Group's MG Rover car dealership in Newcastle for undisclosed terms. 23-Dec-2004 Chubb has acquired Westcountry Security, the Plymouth-based security firm, for undisclosed terms. 23-Dec-2004 Sinclair Pharma is to acquire Euroderm, the Italian supplier of dermatology pharmaceuticals with 33 staff, for £4.2m. 23-Dec-2004 Holidaybreak has acquired Business Reservation Centre Holland, the Dutch short breaks holiday company, for £23m. 23-Dec-2004 Datamonitor is to acquire Butler Research Group, the provider of research services to the IT sector, for up to £11m. 23-Dec-2004 Jarvis has sold its European roads business to the Somaro subsidiary of Bouygues for £25m. 23-Dec-2004 Aegis has acquired iProspect, the US-based internet search marketing agency, for £32m. 23-Dec-2004 Wingas has acquired the Saltfleetby onshore gas field in Lincolnshire for £44m, and will use the site for gas storage. 22-Dec-2004 CH Bailey is to acquire Modular Automation International, the Birmingham-based supplier of bespoke machinery for automated assembly lines, for £0.3m. 22-Dec-2004 Millfield Group is to sell IntelliFlo, the supplier of services to financial advisers, to a management buy-out for £0.3m. 22-Dec-2004 Homeserve has acquired Sergon BRM, the Nottingham-based home insurance repair network with 85 staff, from GAB Robins UK for £11m. 22-Dec-2004 United Utilities has sold 40 green energy projects to Novera Energy and Macquarie Bank for £63m, including 29 landfill gas sites, ten small hydropower sites and one mine gas site. 22-Dec-2004 Polaron has acquired Rossula, the holding company for the Lightfactor and LightProcessor lighting companies, for £0.4m. 21-Dec-2004 Tikit Group has acquired Solution 6 Network & Integration Services, the provider of network support services, for £1m. 21-Dec-2004 Cobham has acquired the French microwave and diodes business of Temex for £5m, and has also announced plans to acquire the defence business of US-based Remec for £135m. 21-Dec-2004 Alltracel Pharmaceuticals is to acquire Westone Products, the London-based developer of oral care products, for an initial £4m. 21-Dec-2004 Beddis & Partners, the Birmingham-based commercial insurance broker with 60 staff, has been acquired by Oval Insurance Broking for undisclosed terms. 21-Dec-2004 Rite-Vent, the Washington-based manufacturer of metal chimneys with 185 staff, has been acquired by Schiedel of Germany for £5m. 21-Dec-2004 Reuters is to acquire Moneyline Telerate, the US financial data company, for up to £90m. 21-Dec-2004 Diageo is to acquire Chalone Wine, the US winemaker, for £134m, adding to its two existing Californian vineyards. 21-Dec-2004 Devro has acquired Biofilm, the Glasgow-based developer of dissolvable thin film technology that can be used as carriers for flavours and other active ingredients. 20-Dec-2004 Bunzl is to acquire Gelpa Verpakkingsgroep, the Dutch packaging and consumables supplier, for £30m. 20-Dec-2004 Milltech Precision Engineering of Norwich has undergone a management buy-out, securing the future of the 20-strong workforce. 20-Dec-2004 McLelland Cheese of Glasgow has been acquired by Lactalis of France for an estimated £170m. 20-Dec-2004 Wilkin Chapman, the law firm with 178 staff at offices in Grimsby, Lincoln, Cleethorpes, Louth, and Horncastle, has merged with Cooper & Wright of Beverley. 20-Dec-2004 Dawnay Day and Shore Capital have acquired three Hanover International hotels in Daventry, Hinckley and Basingstoke for £57m. 20-Dec-2004 Center Parcs has acquired Chapel Spa in Cheltenham for £1.3m, in order to test the viability of operating standalone spas that are separate from its Aqua Sana brand. 20-Dec-2004 JCA TV Facilities, the London-based TV production company with 21 staff, has been acquired by TVP Group. 20-Dec-2004 Serco has acquired ITNet, the IT services company, for £235m and RCI of the US for £113m. 20-Dec-2004 Kidde, the fire protection company, has accepted a £1.44bn takeover bid from United Technology Corporation of the US. 20-Dec-2004 Ilchester Cheese, the blended cheese producer, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Inflexion Private Equity. 17-Dec-2004 Focus Wickes has sold its Wickes chain of 172 DIY stores to Travis Perkins for £950m. 17-Dec-2004 Bank of Ireland is to acquire Burdale Financial Holdings, the London-based corporate lender with 30 staff, for £49m. 17-Dec-2004 Adventis Group is to acquire Affiniti, the Chesham-based marketing and design agency with 20 staff, for an initial £1.1m. 17-Dec-2004 Bizspace is to acquire a portfolio of 22 managed workspace properties in the North East from UK Land Estates and One NorthEast for £28m. 17-Dec-2004 SQW, the management consultancy with 65 staff at offices in Cambridge, Edinburgh, Leeds, London and Manchester, is to undergo a management buy-out with £1.5m of funding from Bank of Scotland Corporate. 16-Dec-2004 Weedfree, the North Yorkshire-based company with 105 staff that specialises in clearing leaves from railway lines, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 16-Dec-2004 Abnormal Load Engineering has acquired the distribution services division of Alstom Power Service UK for undisclosed terms. 16-Dec-2004 Cello has acquired Navigator Responsive Advertising, the Edinburgh-based direct marketing agency, for £4.6m. 16-Dec-2004 Laurel Pub Company is to sell 160 bars and pubs to investment vehicle R20 for £151m. 16-Dec-2004 Johnson Service has acquired S Yaffy, the Scottish manufacturer of outdoor clothing, for £3.5m. 15-Dec-2004 Sirius Financial Solutions has acquired Datasure Management Systems of New Zealand for almost £1m, and is now looking to supply its insurance software in Australia. 15-Dec-2004 National Australia Bank is to sell Northern Bank and National Irish Bank to Danske Bank of Denmark for £967m, which could lead to the loss of a few hundred back-office jobs in Northern Ireland. 15-Dec-2004 Pearson has sold its 79% stake in Recoletos, the Spanish newspaper publisher, to a management buy-in for £513m. 15-Dec-2004 Avecia is to sell its NeoResins coatings and inks business, which has 635 staff at five sites worldwide, to DSM of the Netherlands for £355m. 15-Dec-2004 Morgan Sindall has acquired three Benson operating divisions out of administration for £3m, including 175 staff in Reigate, Hatfield and Southampton. 14-Dec-2004 Careforce has acquired Independent Home Care of Northamptonshire for £0.3m. 14-Dec-2004 SectorGuard has acquired Choice Security Services, the Stourbridge-based manned security company, for an initial £0.1m. 14-Dec-2004 Spark Response has acquired Woodgate Fulfilment, the East Sussex-based supplier of call centre services to magazine publishers with 160 staff, for undisclosed terms. 14-Dec-2004 Gabriel-Chemie has acquired the stock and goodwill of Addcolour Plastics, the Wigan-based masterbatch company, out of administration. 14-Dec-2004 Inter Link Foods has acquired Cukiernia Mistrza Jana, the Polish cake manufacturer, for up to £1.2m. 14-Dec-2004 IAWS has acquired Groupe Hubert, the French bakery products supplier, from Apax Partners for £90m. 14-Dec-2004 Chime Communications has acquired Traffic Werbeagentur, the German marketing communications consultancy, for an initial £0.4m. 13-Dec-2004 Rigblast is to merge with MacGregor Energy and Mach-Ten Offshore, creating a combined Aberdeen-based oil services group called RBG with 2,500 staff. 13-Dec-2004 Faith Shoes, the chain of 67 shoe shops and 120 concessions, has been acquired by Bridgepoint Capital for £64m. 13-Dec-2004 Kingfield Heath, the Sheffield-based office products supplier, has undergone a £85m management buy-out backed by Legal & General Ventures. 13-Dec-2004 Berkeley Morgan is to be acquired by Personal Group for £12m, creating one of the country's largest providers of personal insurance and employee benefits. 13-Dec-2004 Investec is to merge its Carr Sheppards Crosthwaite division with Rensburg, creating a combined stockbroking business with 12 branches across the country. 13-Dec-2004 HHG is to sell four closed life assurance brands, including Pearl, London Life, NPI and National Provident Life, to Life Company Investor Group for £1bn. 13-Dec-2004 TI Solutions, the Belfast-based IT services company, has been sold by Fred Olsen Energy to Stirk Lamont & Associates for £0.3m. 10-Dec-2004 Premier Foods is to acquire Bird's Custard, Angel Delight and associated brands from Kraft Foods for £70m, and production will be integrated into its Knighton factory in Staffordshire. 10-Dec-2004 Keelys has acquired Simon Murray, the London-based law firm with 15 staff at offices in Covent Garden and Islington. 10-Dec-2004 Swiss Life is to sell its UK life insurance operation, which employs 270 staff in Liverpool, to Resolution Life for £205m. 10-Dec-2004 Purcell Miller Tritton, the Norwich-based conservation architect firm with 120 staff, has acquired Martin Stancliffe Architects of York. 10-Dec-2004 API Group has sold its Caerphilly-based Metallised Paper division to a management buy-in operating under the name of Metallised Products. 09-Dec-2004 BBA Group is to acquire Boker Aeroclean, the Heathrow-based aircraft cleaning company, for £12m, as well as an 85% stake in FBO Shannon of Shannon Airport for £1.8m. 09-Dec-2004 Careforce has acquired Clarina Care, the Guildford-based provider of care services, for £1.4m. 09-Dec-2004 Helen McArdle Care, the chain of 24 care homes in the north-east, has been acquired by Bondcare of London for £100m. 09-Dec-2004 Travis Perkins has acquired JH Walker, the York-based builders' merchant with 17 staff, for undisclosed terms. 09-Dec-2004 Supporta has sold four recruitment businesses to Venturestaff UK for £0.6m, including Transcend Recruitment, Rovira Personnel and Sarah Harvey Recruitment offices in Birmingham and Leamington Spa. 09-Dec-2004 Spirit Group is to sell 364 pubs to investment vehicle R20 for £345m, and the pubs will be converted to tenancies with Scottish & Newcastle supplying the beer. 09-Dec-2004 Arla Foods is to merge with Campina of the Netherlands, creating a combined dairy business called Campina Arla with 28,000 staff. 09-Dec-2004 Low & Bonar has acquired LCM Construction Products, the polypropylene fibre manufacturer, for £13m. 08-Dec-2004 Glanbia has acquired Kortus Food Ingredients Services of Germany for £10m. 08-Dec-2004 Imprint Search & Selection is to acquire ECHM Group, the recruitment company with 132 staff in London, Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Amsterdam and Dublin, for an initial £6m. 08-Dec-2004 Ashcourt Holdings has acquired Howells, Rawlings & Ward, the independent financial advisor, for £0.2m. 08-Dec-2004 Denby, the Derbyshire pottery with 610 staff, is to undergo a £48m management buy-out backed by Bank of Scotland Corporate. 08-Dec-2004 Morrisons is planning to acquire Kepak Buchan, the Turriff-based abattoir with 200 staff, for undisclosed terms. 08-Dec-2004 Marley Floors, the Maidstone-based vinyl floor manufacturer, is to be sold by ETEX Group to Tarkett of Germany. 08-Dec-2004 Future Network has acquired Beach Magazines & Publishing, the publisher of three magazine titles, for an initial £1.5m. 07-Dec-2004 Anite has sold Anite Transport, the provider of consultancy services to the passenger transport industry with 17 staff, to Trapeze for £0.9m. 07-Dec-2004 Datamonitor has acquired eBenchmarkers, the supplier of operational performance benchmarking services, for £4.3m. 07-Dec-2004 Roman Mosaic, the Tipton-based tile importer, has been bought out of administration by Tiles UK of Manchester. 07-Dec-2004 MEDC, the Nottingham-based alarms and PA systems manufacturer with annual turnover of £12m, has been acquired by Cooper Industries of the US for undisclosed terms. 07-Dec-2004 East Sussex Press has acquired Beacon Press for undisclosed terms, creating a combined printing business with 140 staff at sites in Uckfield and Crowborough. 07-Dec-2004 Courts has sold Courts Contracts, which fits out show homes for housebuilders and has 90 staff at eight warehouses, to a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 07-Dec-2004 Cater Barnard is to acquire Navitas Hemway and Telco Solutions, as part of a strategy to provide a wide range of professional services to the real estate industry. 06-Dec-2004 NWF Group has acquired JGW Thomas & Son, the Devon-based animal feed manufacturer, for £3.6m. 06-Dec-2004 Peak Refrigeration of Wigan and Air Continental of Cannock have been acquired by Auxilia, a new network of air conditioning and refrigeration companies with £6m of backing from Bank of Scotland Corporate. 06-Dec-2004 Keltruck has acquired East Midland Commercials, creating a combined truck dealership with almost 500 staff and 17 locations across the Midlands. 06-Dec-2004 Leyland Product Developments, the Leyland-based vehicle designer with 45 staff, has been acquired by Greencool Technologies of China. 06-Dec-2004 Findel is to acquire GLS Educational Supplies for £27m, in order to expand its educational supplies business in the London area. 06-Dec-2004 Baldwin & Francis, the Sheffield-based switchgear products manufacturer with 90 staff, has undergone a management buy-out. 06-Dec-2004 Wolverhampton & Dudley is to acquire Burtonwood, the Cheshire-based chain of 460 pubs, for £120m. 06-Dec-2004 SPG Media Group has sold its Debrett's publishing business to Devonshire Media for about £1m. 06-Dec-2004 Aktrion, the manufacturing outsourcing company, has been sold by Bridgepoint Capital to Graphite Capital for undisclosed terms. 06-Dec-2004 ECI Partners has acquired LateRooms, the Manchester-based online hotel booking business with 100 staff, for about £25m. 06-Dec-2004 NTL is to sell its Broadcast TV picture transmission division to Macquarie Communications Infrastructure Group for £1.27bn. 06-Dec-2004 James Fisher has acquired three companies in the UK and Norway for £7.3m, including Remote Marine Systems, Nuclear Decommissioning and Reanco Team. 06-Dec-2004 UGC is to sell its 42 UK cinemas to Blackstone for about £200m, and the business will be combined with Blackstone's Cine-UK chain. 06-Dec-2004 Cendant has agreed to acquire Ebookers, the online travel company, for £209m. 06-Dec-2004 DLA is planning to merge with Piper Rudnick of the US to create an international law firm with 6,000 staff in 18 countries. 06-Dec-2004 West Private Equity has sold 17 Asquith Court schools to Cognita for an estimated £60m, making Cognita the country's largest independent schools operator. 03-Dec-2004 Target Direct Marketing, the Cheltenham-based print management company, has been acquired by Cello for undisclosed terms. 03-Dec-2004 Gregory Distribution has acquired Greendale Haulage, the East Devon-based waste transport company with 30 staff, for undisclosed terms. 03-Dec-2004 Unilever has agreed to sell its frozen pizza and baguette business to Dr Oetker of Germany for undisclosed terms. 02-Dec-2004 Future Network has acquired What Laptop magazine from Crimson Publishing for £0.7m. 02-Dec-2004 MacLellan Group has acquired TASS, the supplier of cradles, safety eyebolts and safety ladder tie systems, for an initial £3.2m. 02-Dec-2004 ILX Group is to acquire Mindscope, the provider of classroom training and project management services, for up to £1.9m. 02-Dec-2004 BIP, the Oldbury-based plastic mouldings company, has been bought out of administration by Synthite of Mold for undisclosed terms, securing the future of 170 jobs. 02-Dec-2004 Stewartry Care, the Castle Douglas-based provider of hygiene and healthcare services, has been sold to its 132 employees in a deal backed by the Baxi Partnership. 02-Dec-2004 Aggregate Industries has acquired the Allt-y-Garn quarry near Cross Hands in South Wales. 02-Dec-2004 Page & Moy of Leicestershire has been acquired by Travelsphere, creating a combined travel business with annual sales of £175m. 02-Dec-2004 Lafarge has acquired the readymix operations of Riskend Aggregates, which includes four plants in Glasgow and a new site in Edinburgh. 01-Dec-2004 New Media Industries is to acquire Ipix Holdings for £4.5m, in order to expand its marketing services business. 01-Dec-2004 Sainsbury has acquired JB Beaumont, the operator of six convenience stores in the East Midlands with 193 staff. 01-Dec-2004 Kingston Communications is to acquire Omnetica, the Hemel Hempstead-based provider of enterprise network solutions, for £169m. 01-Dec-2004 Clapham House has acquired Gourmet Burger Kitchen, the operator of six London restaurants, for £2.6m. 01-Dec-2004 Sleaford Quality Foods, the supplier of dried foods with 120 staff, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Lloyds TSB Commercial. 01-Dec-2004 Passenger Lift Services, the Smethwick-based manufacturer of access lifts with 64 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 01-Dec-2004 NHP, the operator of 192 nursing homes, is to be acquired by Blackstone of the US for £564m. 30-Nov-2004 Tate & Lyle has acquired Dolcre Food Ingredients, the South African fructose importer with net assets worth £1.4m. 30-Nov-2004 Colliers CRE has acquired Campbell & Co, the Glasgow-based firm of surveyors, for £1.7m. 30-Nov-2004 Jubb, the Leicestershire-based plastic bottles manufacturer, has been bought of administration by BM Etchco of Birmingham for undisclosed terms, securing the future of 71 jobs. 30-Nov-2004 Glisten is to acquire Halo Foods, the manufacturer of cereal, energy and diet bars with 450 staff at three sites in Wales, for £5.6m. 29-Nov-2004 Charles Stanley has acquired Sutherlands Group, the independent stockbroker with offices in Edinburgh and London, for £2.4m. 29-Nov-2004 MGMS International, the Brighouse-based executive recruitment firm with 60 staff, has been acquired by BNB Resources for undisclosed terms. 29-Nov-2004 Bank Bottom Engineering Services of West Yorkshire has been bought out of administration by Hystat Systems of Slaithwaite, securing the future of 21 staff. 29-Nov-2004 Olan Mills, the chain of 73 photographic studios, has been acquired by Piper Private Equity and Graphite Capital for up to £10m. 29-Nov-2004 Wilson Storey Halliday has merged with Baxter Smith, creating a combined contract catering business known as Baxter Storey with annual sales of more than £100m. 29-Nov-2004 QXL Ricardo, the online auction company, is to undergo a £12m management buy-out. 29-Nov-2004 YooMedia has acquired Digital Interactive Television Group, the TV gambling company, for £33m. 29-Nov-2004 Morley Electric Motors, the Yorkshire-based manufacturer of electric motors with 125 staff, has been acquired by ATB Austria Antriebstechnik for undisclosed terms. 26-Nov-2004 Bunzl has acquired Joseph Weil & Sons of the US and Beltex of Hungary, two distributors of cleaning and safety products. 25-Nov-2004 Kidde has acquired Harden, the French supplier of fire protection equipment and services with 143 staff, for £7m. 25-Nov-2004 TBI, the owner of Cardiff, Luton, Belfast and other airports, has accepted a £551m takeover bid from Abertis of Spain. 25-Nov-2004 FM Workshop, the Pontypool-based software company, has undergone a £0.5m management buy-out. 25-Nov-2004 Vizor Tempered Glass of Port Talbot and sister company Glass Systems of Swansea have undergone a management buy-out. 25-Nov-2004 CJ Lang & Son of Dundee has sold its Penrith-based cash-and-carry and food service operations to Peter Lowrie & Co of Newcastle for undisclosed terms. 25-Nov-2004 Nicholl Food Packaging has acquired Watson & Watson, the Glasgow-based aluminium foil tray manufacturer, for undisclosed terms. 25-Nov-2004 KC Engineering has acquired Hoyt Engineering of Surrey, as part of a £1.4m expansion programme that will involve the transfer of Hoyt's business to Consett. 24-Nov-2004 Dairy Crest has acquired Coombe Farm Dairies of Sussex, and the milk bottling and processing plant will close with distribution moved to Dairy Crest sites in Eastbourne, Brighton and Worthing. 24-Nov-2004 Cosalt has sold its Knox Fibres carpet yarns business to management for £3.3m, as part of a strategy to focus on workwear, safety equipment and holiday homes. 24-Nov-2004 Esteem Systems, the Wetherby-based IT services company with more than 100 staff, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Primary Capital. 24-Nov-2004 UA Group, the Scottish livestock auctioneering company with 90 staff, has accepted a £52m takeover offer from Elphinstone of Glasgow. 24-Nov-2004 ICI is to sell its National Starch & Chemical polymer operations in North America and Europe to Celanese of the US for £112m. 24-Nov-2004 CJ Pearce, the Telford-based contractor with 55 staff, has undergone a management buy-out from Meade Corporation. 24-Nov-2004 Dipford is to acquire full operating control of the Redwoods network of company brokerage regional offices for £1.8m. 23-Nov-2004 Aegis Group is to acquire Velocity Sports & Entertainment, the US sponsorship and event marketing agency, for an initial £5m. 23-Nov-2004 Carmichael International, the Worcester-based manufacturer of fire rescue vehicles with about 100 staff, has been acquired by the Amdac subsidiary of Pesaka Astana of Malaysia. 23-Nov-2004 Telecom Service Centres has acquired the T-Mobile customer service call centre in Dearne Valley, South Yorkshire, securing the future of 380 jobs. 23-Nov-2004 ING Group is selling Baring Asset Management's fund management business to MassMutual Financial for undisclosed terms, while BAM's custody and fund administration business is being sold to Northern Trust for £260m. 23-Nov-2004 Anglia Co-op has acquired seven Sunwin department stores from United Co-op for undisclosed terms, and the sites will be converted to Anglia's Westgate format. 23-Nov-2004 Technology Services Group has acquired Forty One, the Warrington-based IT services company with 27 staff, for undisclosed terms. 22-Nov-2004 Zero Waste Holdings of Port Clarence and Atlantic Waste Holdings of Peterborough have been acquired by shell company Augean for £106m, and the deals are being funded by a £100m share placing. 22-Nov-2004 Jimmy Choo, the supplier of shoes and other luxury goods, has sold a majority stake to private equity firm Hicks Muse in a £101m deal. 22-Nov-2004 Diageo is to acquire Ursus Vodka, the Dutch owner of two vodka brands, for £102m. 22-Nov-2004 Bradford & Bingley is planning to sell its Charcol mortgage broking business to a management buy-out backed by Advantage Capital for under £10m. 22-Nov-2004 Prudential is to acquire Life Assurance Company of Georgia from ING for £137m, in order to expand its Jackson National Life business in the US. 22-Nov-2004 Interflora is expected to be acquired by 3i for £23m, with almost 1,900 flower shop owners receiving up to £12,000. 22-Nov-2004 Clinton Cards is to acquire Birthdays Group, the greetings card retailer with 500 stores, for £49m. 19-Nov-2004 Tribal Group has acquired Dereck Hicks & Thew, the Liverpool-based architect, for up to £3.4m. 18-Nov-2004 Capita Group has acquired Brownsword, the provider of claims investigation services, for £5m. 18-Nov-2004 Alliance UniChem is to sell Crest Medical, the supplier of first aid and medical products, to Healthcare Enterprise Group for an initial £4.5m. 18-Nov-2004 Huntleigh Technology has sold Huntleigh National Care, the supplier of community equipment services to local authorities and healthcare trusts, to the Nottingham Rehab subsidiary of Findel. 18-Nov-2004 Osborne Engineering has acquired Turbo Power Services of Loughborough for £0.4m, in order to expand its range of services for the offshore and power generation industries. 18-Nov-2004 M&M Plasline has acquired Metek Building Systems of Bristol for about £1m, and is relocating its own business to a larger site in Newton Aycliffe with the creation of 35 jobs next month. 18-Nov-2004 YorkBoat, the York-based pleasure boating company with 20 staff, has been acquired by investment company Zeus Capital for undisclosed terms. 18-Nov-2004 Sage has acquired Federal Liaison Services for £9.7m, in order to expand its payroll outsourcing service in the US. 17-Nov-2004 Barclays Private Equity has supported a management buy-out at The Original Factory Shop, the 54-strong Yorkshire-based chain that is planning to open a further 20 sites over the next three years. 17-Nov-2004 Azure Solutions has acquired Anite Calculus, the telecoms software company that supplies interconnect, wholesale and partner event billing, rating and settlement applications, for undisclosed terms. 17-Nov-2004 Bourne Leisure Group has sold Haven Europe, the operator of holiday parks in France, Spain and Italy, to management for £49m. 17-Nov-2004 West Bromwich Albion is to return to private ownership following a £10m offer from a bid vehicle created by the club. 16-Nov-2004 Kraft Foods is to sell the Altoids and Life Savers confectionery businesses to Wrigley for £795m, which will include the transfer of 100 staff at a manufacturing plant in Bridgend. 16-Nov-2004 Gowrings, the chain of 41 Burger King restaurants, is to be acquired by Caspian for £9.6m. 16-Nov-2004 Ford has sold its Cosworth motorsport technology engineering operations to the owners of the Champ Car World Series for undisclosed terms, while its Jaguar Racing business has been acquired by Red Bull. 16-Nov-2004 Torex Retail is to acquire the retail IT division of Alphameric, which includes 350 staff in Manchester, Stockport and Leicester, for up to £30m. 16-Nov-2004 Meggitt is to acquire Wilcoxon Research, the US manufacturer of sensors, for £8m. 16-Nov-2004 Matrix Communications has acquired Network Partners, the provider of telecoms services, for £12m. 16-Nov-2004 Futuremedia has acquired Open Training, the Swedish provider of online training services, for about £1m. 16-Nov-2004 Rocc Computers has acquired Tal Computer Services of Egham for undisclosed terms. 16-Nov-2004 Sector Design, the Leicester-based point-of-purchase display company with 26 staff, has undergone a management buy-out. 16-Nov-2004 LK Bennett, the chain of 50 fashion stores valued at about £75m, has appointed BDO Stoy Hayward to find outside investors to take control of the business. 15-Nov-2004 Corinthian Television Facilities has sold a majority stake in its London-based business to Thomson of France for undisclosed terms, and will be merged with Thomson's Technicolor division. 15-Nov-2004 Jeroboams Group has acquired La Reserve, the London-based drinks retailer and wholesaler with four stores. 15-Nov-2004 Countryside Properties, the Essex-based housebuilder, has accepted a £218m takeover offer from Copthorn Holdings. 15-Nov-2004 Jarvis is planning to sell its private finance initiative unit to Hochtief Projektentwicklung of Germany for undisclosed terms. 15-Nov-2004 ITV has agreed to sell The Moving Picture Company, the provider of TV special effects, to the Technicolor division of Thomson of France for £53m. 15-Nov-2004 Wealth Management Software has acquired Genisys Technology, the supplier of document management and business process management software, for £0.2m. 15-Nov-2004 Sims Group has acquired MIREC, the waste electrical and electronic equipment recycling company with sites in the Benelux countries, Sweden and the UK. 15-Nov-2004 Whitbread is to sell its Courtyard by Marriott hotels for £79m, and Kew Green Hotels Group will operate the sites through a franchise agreement with Marriott International. 12-Nov-2004 Touchstone is to acquire Tate Bramald, the London-based business solutions company with 33 staff, for an initial £1.2m. 12-Nov-2004 Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Group is to sell its Japanese branch operations to American Home Assurance Company and AIU Insurance Company for £92m. 12-Nov-2004 Melloy Castings of Newport and MCL Engineering of Pontyclun have merged to form a new aluminium components group with 50 staff. 12-Nov-2004 BMS Biometrics has acquired ISL Biometrics, the developer of biometric security software, for undisclosed terms. 12-Nov-2004 HBCL Coldstores has acquired Panelform, the Bradford-based manufacturer of panels for cold rooms, for undisclosed terms. 12-Nov-2004 ITrain is to acquire Applied Interactive, the Milton Keynes-based supplier of training software, for up to £1.2m. 11-Nov-2004 Greenfield Construction, the Nottingham-based groundworks company with 70 staff, is to be acquired by Hightower Construction for £0.7m. 11-Nov-2004 Willis has acquired Opus, the insurance company with 50 staff in Cardiff and Swansea, for undisclosed terms. 11-Nov-2004 Warwick International has acquired Equest Market Research, the Durham-based supplier of detergent laboratory test products with annual turnover of £2m. 11-Nov-2004 Daily Mail & General Trust has acquired Find a Property, the independent property website, for £14m, in order to expand its Associated Newspapers division. 11-Nov-2004 Cheshire Clothing Company has been bought out of administration by a management consortium, securing the future of 112 staff at its luxury clothing factory in Crewe. 11-Nov-2004 Hanson Building Products has acquired Wilnecote Brick, the Tamworth-based brick supplier, from Tarmac for undisclosed terms. 11-Nov-2004 Mk One, the chain of 176 fashion stores, is to be acquired by Baugur in a £55m deal. 11-Nov-2004 Singer & Friedlander is forming a joint venture with Benfield Group to acquire the whole of Benfield Premium Finance, in order to offer a complete range of personal and commercial insurance products. 10-Nov-2004 Wood Group has acquired Woodhill Engineering Consultants, the Surrey-based engineering consultancy with annual turnover of £4m. 10-Nov-2004 Eclipse Scientific has acquired Silliker, which has 25 staff at analytical laboratories in Swadlincote and Braintree, for undisclosed terms. 10-Nov-2004 WILink has acquired Communicast, the US-based web conferencing company, for an initial £1.7m. 09-Nov-2004 BT Group has acquired Infonet Services for £520m, in order to expand its telecoms operations in the US and Asia. 09-Nov-2004 Kidde has acquired TTS Electronics, the South African manufacturer of fire detection systems, for an initial £0.7m. 09-Nov-2004 Whatman is to acquire Schleicher & Schuell, the German supplier of laboratory instruments, for £35m. 09-Nov-2004 Jelf Group is to acquire Managed Healthcare, the Somerset-based brokerage specialising in healthcare and private medical insurance, for less than £0.2m. 09-Nov-2004 VCX Software, the Livingston-based database technology company, has been acquired by Beach Solutions. 09-Nov-2004 Nichols has completed the sale of Nichols Foods, the Haydock-based beverage supplier, to management for £8.1m. 08-Nov-2004 First Dental Laboratories (1st Dental) is to acquire Benchmark Dental Laboratories for £4.7m, increasing its chain of laboratories from ten to 15. 08-Nov-2004 Brixton has acquired a portfolio of 163 industrial properties from Industrious Holdings for £675m. 08-Nov-2004 Northern Foods is to sell the Cavaghan & Gray Seafood chilled and frozen fish business to IFP Holdings, a subsidiary of Icelandic Group, for £13m, which will involve the transfer of 240 staff based in Grimsby and 150 in Aberdeen. 05-Nov-2004 Scorpio Print Finishing has acquired Senator Print Finishers, the Leicester-based printing company, for undisclosed terms, and the 54-strong workforce is expected to rise by up to 30. 05-Nov-2004 William Taylor, the Preston-based supplier of swimming pools and saunas with 120 staff, has undergone a management buy-out. 04-Nov-2004 Centrica has acquired BASE Controls, the Canadian automation and controls company, for £6.3m. 04-Nov-2004 Exel has acquired Waste Hire Services, the provider of waste management collection services with 37 staff in Telford and Bury, in order to expand its Cory Environmental subsidiary. 04-Nov-2004 Cadbury Schweppes has acquired the Orangina soft drink brand from Pernod Ricard for £21m. 04-Nov-2004 N Brown has acquired House of Bath, the gift catalogue, for £1.1m, in order to expand its home shopping business. 04-Nov-2004 NWF Group has sold five country stores to Countrywide Farmers for £2.4m, and has also announced the acquisition of Victoria Garden Centre for £6.1m. 03-Nov-2004 Ant Marketing is creating 200 telemarketing jobs at its call centres in Sheffield, Rotherham and Chesterfield. 03-Nov-2004 Manor Kingdom, the Dunfermline-based luxury housebuilder, has been acquired by the owner of Bett Homes for undisclosed terms. 03-Nov-2004 CDI Group, the Birmingham-based network systems company with 90 staff, has sold its Bristol-based South and West division to management. 03-Nov-2004 Sage has acquired IntelligentApps, the London-based software company with turnover of £1m, as well as George Stamford, the holding company of Advanced Paypoint Solutions. 03-Nov-2004 DTW, the PR and marketing agency with 30 staff in Guisborough, Canterbury and London, has been acquired by PPS for £2m. 03-Nov-2004 Brandon Hire has acquired AM Plant & Tool Hire of Luton for £0.2m, taking the total number of branches to 130. 02-Nov-2004 Charteris has acquired Cedalion, the Edinburgh-based IT consultancy, for £3m. 02-Nov-2004 Media Square has sold Coutts Packaging, the supplier of corrugated cardboard boxes, to a management team for up to £3.9m. 02-Nov-2004 Lookers has acquired Darlington Volkswagen from Mill Garages for £0.8m, in order to complement its existing VW dealership on Teesside. 02-Nov-2004 RPC is to acquire the European plastic packaging operations of Nampak for £23m, and the Woburn Sands site will be closed and production transferred to the other two sites in Haltwhistle and Llantrisant. 02-Nov-2004 Colliers CRE has acquired Fletcher King Manchester, the Manchester-based firm of chartered surveyors, for £0.4m. 02-Nov-2004 Deltron Electronics has acquired Quiller Electronics, the distributor of electromechanical components to the manufacturing industry, for £3.1m. 02-Nov-2004 Highway Insurance has acquired Direct Motorline, the Ipswich-based insurance broker, for £3.4m, and the business will relocate to Highway's Ipswich office in early 2005. 02-Nov-2004 Cobham has acquired Spectronic, the Danish manufacturer of audio surveillance products with 60 staff, for £21m. 02-Nov-2004 Carr's Milling Industries is to acquire Meneba UK, the operator of flour mills in Kirkcaldy and Maldon, for £4.7m. 01-Nov-2004 Argonaut Games has sold its video games studios in Cambridge and north London out of administration to former management, securing the future of 40 jobs. 01-Nov-2004 Cybit Holdings has acquired the mapAmobile mobile location service from MI International, in order to expand its fleet and asset management operations. 01-Nov-2004 Newboulds, the Middlesbrough-based manufacturer of pies and pasties, has undergone a management buy-in backed by Allied Irish Bank. 01-Nov-2004 Clarity Commerce Solutions is to acquire Baron LRMS, the supplier of software to the leisure sector, for up to £0.6m. 01-Nov-2004 Midlands Co-op has acquired Metro Discount Stores, the Burton-based chain of eight food stores, taking its estate to 162. 01-Nov-2004 Cromwells Madhouse, the discount fashion retailer, is expected to be bought out of administration by Sports Soccer. 01-Nov-2004 Zeal Television has acquired The Chatterbox Partnership, the TV production company, for about £1m. 01-Nov-2004 Sportingbet is to acquire Paradise Poker, the US online gaming company, for an initial £169m. 01-Nov-2004 Blacks Leisure has acquired 27 Outdoors stores from the Scout Association for £2.6m. 01-Nov-2004 JSC, the Harrogate-based chemical industry consultancy with 20 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms from US parent company Shaw Group. 29-Oct-2004 BBA Group is to acquire Airport Group International, the US airport services company, from TBI for £13m, as well as Executive Aircraft Services from Group4Securicor for £4.5m. 29-Oct-2004 Warner Chilcott, the Craigavon-based pharmaceuticals company, has accepted a £1.6bn takeover offer from a private equity consortium of DLJ Merchant Banking and JP Morgan. 28-Oct-2004 Alurite, the Cardiff-based manufacturer of aluminium windows and doors with 22 staff, has undergone a £0.4m management buy-out. 28-Oct-2004 Independent Access Supplies, the plant machinery rental company with 75 staff, has been bought out of administration by a management buy-in. 28-Oct-2004 LEDA Recruitment, the Leeds-based recruitment company, has undergone a £2.7m management buy-out backed by Northern Venture Managers. 28-Oct-2004 Frank Galliers, the Shropshire-based contractor with 100 staff, has been acquired by Pan Atlanta Developments for undisclosed terms. 28-Oct-2004 Friends Provident is to acquire Lombard International, the Luxembourg-based life assurance company, for up to £414m. 27-Oct-2004 Standard Chartered is to acquire the London-based project finance business of Australia & New Zealand Banking Group. 27-Oct-2004 Clarion Events, the exhibitions business, is to undergo a management buy-out from Earls Court & Olympia, in a £50m deal backed by Hg Capital. 27-Oct-2004 Kleeneze has acquired I Want One of Those, the online retailer of gifts and lifestyle accessories, for £6m. 27-Oct-2004 One Way Circuits has acquired Circast Electronics, the Warwickshire-based electronics manufacturer with 100 staff. 26-Oct-2004 JT Morgan, the Swansea-based speciality warehouse store, has undergone a £1m management buy-out, securing the future of 150 jobs. 26-Oct-2004 Multipart Universal, the Sheffield-based truck parts specialist with 56 staff, has undergone a management buy-in backed by Enterprise Finance Europe, and will be renamed Universal Components UK. 26-Oct-2004 Hampson Industries has acquired Texstars, the US manufacturer of aircraft parts with 250 staff, for £22m. 26-Oct-2004 Meggitt has acquired Schreiner, the Canadian manufacturer of military vehicles, for £2.9m. 26-Oct-2004 VT Group has acquired The Guidance Enterprises Group, the Yorkshire-based careers advisory company, for £2.5m. 26-Oct-2004 Dicom has acquired Neurascript, the Cambridge-based supplier of information sorting software, for up to £8.3m. 26-Oct-2004 Morrisons is to sell 114 Safeway stores and a distribution centre in Welwyn to Somerfield and Northwharf Investments, in two deals worth £260m. 26-Oct-2004 Close Brothers Private Equity has acquired the showers manufacturing business of Baxi Holdings from Heating Finance for £82m. 25-Oct-2004 Alliance Pharma is to buy various pharmaceutical brands from Unigreg, as well as certain dental assets from CollaGenex International, for a combined £8.8m. 25-Oct-2004 CES UK has acquired Liverpool Exhaust Supplies and Fairfield Motor Services for undisclosed terms. 25-Oct-2004 East Anglian Pharmaceuticals, the Norwich-based drugs wholesaler with 130 staff, is to be acquired by Phoenix Healthcare Distribution for undisclosed terms. 25-Oct-2004 Vinci Energies has bought Ford Communications and Arthur Ford out of administration for undisclosed terms, securing 70 jobs at an engineering site in Nottingham. 25-Oct-2004 European Supplies, the supplier of British foods to Spanish retailers, is being acquired by Lennox Holdings, and £4m will be raised in a flotation on Aim. 25-Oct-2004 Egg is to sell the unsecured loan book of its French operations to Banque Accord for up to £96m, with the transfer of about 100 staff. 25-Oct-2004 Close Brothers Private Equity has provided £16m of development capital to fund the buy-out of Pilgrim, the food ingredients company. 22-Oct-2004 Keller Group has sold its J Woods stone masonry business to Rattee & Kett, a division of Mowlem, for a nominal sum. 22-Oct-2004 Redditch Laser Cutting has been acquired by Advanced Engineering Group of Henley in Arden, and £3m will be invested in expanding the business. 21-Oct-2004 Magnex Scientific, the manufacturer of magnetic resonance imaging equipment with 150 staff, is to be acquired by Varian of the US for £18m. 21-Oct-2004 Advent Publishing Systems of Swindon has been acquired by Arbortext, the US provider of information streamlining services. 21-Oct-2004 Glenmorangie, the whisky company with 350 staff, has been acquired by LVMH of France for £300m. 21-Oct-2004 Vemco Brasscapri, the builders' merchant with annual turnover of £20m, has been acquired by Mueller Industries of the US. 21-Oct-2004 British Land has bought 65 managed pubs from Spirit Group for £174m. 21-Oct-2004 Northern Venture Managers has backed a £3.7m management buy-out from Firstserve Group of Arleigh International, the Warwickshire-based caravan and narrow board supplier. 20-Oct-2004 Westminster Healthcare is to be acquired by Barchester for £525m, creating a combined chain of 160 care homes with about 8,000 staff. 20-Oct-2004 Tootsies, the chain of 23 family restaurants, has been acquired by Urban Dining for £31m, and there are plans to expand the chain to about 100 outlets. 20-Oct-2004 Parkdean Holidays has acquired five holiday parks from Bourne Leisure for £42m, including sites in Great Yarmouth, Dorset, Torquay, Carmarthenshire and the Firth of Clyde. 20-Oct-2004 Civica is to acquire Vehicle Intelligence, the supplier of vehicle data management systems. 20-Oct-2004 ReGen Therapeutics is to acquire Guildford Clinical Pharmacology Unit, the contract research organisation, for £0.25m. 20-Oct-2004 Documedia Solutions is to sell its stationery litho printing business at Bury St Edmunds to Docuprint for £0.4m. 20-Oct-2004 Rok Property Solutions has acquired Team Building Maintenance, the Birmingham-based property maintenance company, for £0.2m. 19-Oct-2004 Hemscott has acquired Bigdough, the US provider of financial information to fund managers, for £21m. 19-Oct-2004 Hermes is to acquire Wescot Credit Services, the debt collection agency, for about £110m. 19-Oct-2004 Egg is planning to sell its UK-based individual savings account and share trading operations to Fidelity Investments for undisclosed terms. 19-Oct-2004 SMS Agencies, the Crawley-based supplier of lorry drivers to transport companies with a network of 30 branches, has been sold to a management team backed by Northern Venture Managers for £8.2m. 19-Oct-2004 Co-operative Group has acquired Howard & Palmer, the Swansea-based pharmacy chain with 174 staff and 30 branches. 18-Oct-2004 Interlink, the Yorkshire-based supplier of modular buildings, has been acquired by Waco International of South Africa for £31m. 18-Oct-2004 Bradford & Bingley has sold its estate agency chain to Countrywide for £44m. 18-Oct-2004 Hobbs, the fashion retailer, is to undergo a £110m management buy-out backed by 3i. 18-Oct-2004 Risk Advisory Group, the corporate security company with 750 staff, is expected to undergo a £15m management buy-out. 18-Oct-2004 Alias Hotels, the chain of five hotels, has been acquired by GuestInvest, the buy-to-let hotel operator, for £30m. 18-Oct-2004 Testwood Motor Group, the Southampton-based Audi and VW dealer, has been acquired by Harwoods and Breeze Motor Group for undisclosed terms. 15-Oct-2004 Lind Automotive Group has acquired East Kent Audi, and has also announced plans to invest £35m relocating its five BMW/Mini dealerships over the next 12 months. 15-Oct-2004 All3Media is to acquire Company Pictures, the independent film and TV production company with annual revenue of £20m. 15-Oct-2004 TTP Group has sold The Creativity Partnership, the creativity consultancy, to its founder for undisclosed terms. 15-Oct-2004 Sanctuary Group is to acquire Associated International Management, the London-based theatrical agency. 15-Oct-2004 UKbetting has acquired Campbell's Bookmakers, the chain of seven licensed betting offices based in London and the south east, for up to £1.2m. 15-Oct-2004 Arriva has acquired a 77% stake in Regentalbahn, the German rail services company, from the state of Bavaria for £43m. 15-Oct-2004 Optical Express is to acquire the in-store dental and laser eye correction services operated by Boots, saving 700 jobs, and the services will be integrated into new or existing locations. 15-Oct-2004 James Halstead has acquired Falck Design, the Swedish flooring distributor, for undisclosed terms. 14-Oct-2004 Casper Shipping has acquired BS Freight, the air freight company based at Durham Tees Valley Airport, for undisclosed terms. 14-Oct-2004 TF Bell Group, the insurance broker with offices in Hinckley and Leicester, has undergone a management buy-out. 14-Oct-2004 Icefresh has acquired Prospero, the Norfolk-based frozen and chilled desserts manufacturer with 55 staff. 13-Oct-2004 Business Serve is to acquire Pipemedia, the Leicestershire-based provider of broadband telephone services, for an initial £0.6m. 13-Oct-2004 Helphire is to acquire Albany, the legal expenses insurer, for £46m, which will add eight depots to its network and a call centre in Peterlee. 13-Oct-2004 Holloway White Allom has acquired Gibson Music, the supplier of home cinema and control systems with 25 staff. 13-Oct-2004 Centrica has acquired Glens of Foudland Wind Farm, the 26MW onshore wind farm project near Huntly in Scotland, from Renewable Energy Systems in a £31m deal. 12-Oct-2004 Speedy Hire has acquired the internal hire division of Simons Construction for £0.5m. 12-Oct-2004 MacLellan Group is to acquire First Security Group, the London-based security services company with 1,800 staff, for £18m. 12-Oct-2004 Carillion is to sell its French civil engineering contracting and building business to a local management team for £10m. 12-Oct-2004 Salad Garden, the York-based supplier of sandwich fillings and salads with 18 staff, has undergone a management buy-in and the plant will double in size over the next two years. 12-Oct-2004 John Brown is planning to sell its contract publishing business to a management buy-out backed by Bridgepoint for an estimated £33m. 12-Oct-2004 Canvas Holidays, the camping holidays operator, has been acquired by Cendant for £27m. 12-Oct-2004 Executel, the Gateshead-based telecoms company with 26 staff, has undergone a management buy-out. 11-Oct-2004 Van Leeuwen Precision has acquired M/K Wheeler, the supplier of steel tubes with 50 staff in Brierley Hill and Bury. 11-Oct-2004 Azur Holdings, the software company, is to be acquired by Maxima Holdings for £17m. 11-Oct-2004 Cooltrader has acquired Poundfreeze, the West Midlands-based chain of eight frozen food stores, taking its chain to 20. 11-Oct-2004 Linx Printing Technologies, the Cambridge-based manufacturer of laser and inkjet printers, is to be acquired by Danaher of the US for £86m, after Illinois Tool Works withdrew its bid. 11-Oct-2004 Williams Lea has acquired Bowne Business Solutions, the US business document outsourcing company with 3,000 staff, for £100m. 11-Oct-2004 Air Music & Media has announced the £28m reverse takeover of Music Box Leisure, the distributor of CDs, DVDs and videos. 11-Oct-2004 Argenta Discovery has merged with Etiologics, creating a combined drug discovery contract research group with 120 staff in Harlow and Slough. 08-Oct-2004 Laser Electrical, the chain of eight electrical stores in Northern Ireland, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 08-Oct-2004 Marubeni North Sea is to acquire Energy North Sea, the Aberdeen-based oil company, for undisclosed terms. 08-Oct-2004 Real Affinity has acquired Langham Works, the London-based direct marketing company, in order to expand its Richardson Pailin & Fallows subsidiary. 07-Oct-2004 Leveys, the Whitley Bay-based chain of 18 decorating stores with 120 staff, has been acquired by Strategic Retail for undisclosed terms. 07-Oct-2004 Bunzl has acquired the disposable consumables and packaging distribution business of Cospak in Australia. 06-Oct-2004 Marks & Spencer has acquired the Per Una clothing range for £125m. 06-Oct-2004 Lookers has acquired a Saab dealership in Chester for £0.9m and a Volkswagen dealership in Northallerton for £0.6m. 06-Oct-2004 Auto Extract Systems, the Halifax-based supplier of extraction and ventilation systems, has undergone a management buy-out from Danish owner SM Holdings, and annual turnover is now expected to rise to £1.6m. 06-Oct-2004 Fastnet Fish, the Grimsby-based fish processing company, has been acquired by Andrew Marr International of Hull for undisclosed terms. 06-Oct-2004 Experian has acquired QAS, the supplier of address management software with 370 staff, for £106m. 06-Oct-2004 Marylebone Warwick Balfour is to acquire Hotel Du Vin, the chain of lifestyle hotels with sites in Winchester, Tunbridge Wells, Bristol, Birmingham, Brighton and Harrogate, for £66m. 05-Oct-2004 Spirax-Sarco Engineering is to acquire Eirdata Environmental Services, the Irish provider of utility audit and maintenance services for the pharmaceutical industry, for up to £1.1m. 05-Oct-2004 RPS has acquired BCC, the Dutch environmental engineering consultancy, for £1.6m. 05-Oct-2004 European Motor Holdings has sold its Ocean car wash business to IMO for £1.2m. 05-Oct-2004 Tanfield Group has acquired SEV, the manufacturer of electric vehicles and aerial access equipment, for £2.2m. 05-Oct-2004 Lawrence is to acquire the remaining 50% stake in ECO Animal Health, the supplier of veterinary pharmaceutical products, for an initial £8m. 05-Oct-2004 ILX Group is to acquire Computa-Friendly, the classroom training and IT consultancy, for up to £0.5m. 05-Oct-2004 Business Serve has acquired the ISP division of Vital Online for an initial £0.2m. 05-Oct-2004 K3 Business Technology has acquired Alpha Landsteinar, the Wiltshire-based provider of retail management solutions, for £7.2m. 05-Oct-2004 Ivi Metallics, the Leicester-based manufacturer of nails with 29 staff, has undergone a management buy-out from Texon UK for undisclosed terms. 05-Oct-2004 Botanic Inns, the Belfast-based chain of 11 pubs with 600 staff, has been acquired by a group of investors for undisclosed terms. 04-Oct-2004 European Motor Holdings has sold its Dane Audi car dealership in Chester to Smith Knight Fay for £3.3m. 04-Oct-2004 Sanctuary Group has acquired Tony Davis Management, the US music management company, for £2.2m. 04-Oct-2004 Canisp has acquired the fixed line customer bases and non-geographic number services of both Elphinstone Communications and Sports Club Telecom for £0.2m. 04-Oct-2004 Media Square has acquired Arnold Interactive, the London-based marketing services company with 30 staff, from Havas for £0.6m. 04-Oct-2004 Tellings Golden Miller is to acquire Classic Coaches, the Newcastle-based coach operator with 95 vehicles and 230 staff, for £2.3m. 04-Oct-2004 Brandon Hire has acquired Hiramix of Burton-on-Trent, Yorkshire Tool Hire of Halifax and Universal Tool Hire of Totnes, for a combined £0.8m. 04-Oct-2004 Broker Network Holdings has acquired Norfolk & Suffolk Insurance Brokers of Lowestoft for undisclosed terms. 04-Oct-2004 Kolfor Plant, the Dundee-based equipment rental company with annual sales of £3.7m, has been acquired by Atlas Copco of Sweden for undisclosed terms. 04-Oct-2004 Brooke Smith Associates of Birmingham has merged with CSJ Planning Consultants of Bristol, creating a combined town planning consultancy with 20 planners. 04-Oct-2004 Telegate has sold its 118866 directory inquiries service to Croftacre Holdings for undisclosed terms. 04-Oct-2004 Centrica has acquired Dyno-Rod, the drain clearing company with 89 franchises, for £58m. 04-Oct-2004 Savills has acquired Smith-Woolley, the chartered surveyor with offices in Oxford, Bath and Newark, for £2.4m. 04-Oct-2004 RPS has acquired Kirk McClure Morton, the Belfast-based environmental consultancy with 140 staff, for £8.4m. 04-Oct-2004 Virotec International is planning to sell HydroDec, the oil recycling company, to Vert-eco for £7m. 04-Oct-2004 Kingston Communications has acquired Eclipse Networking, the internet service provider, for £12m. 01-Oct-2004 NWD has acquired Clinic Group, the London-based marketing services company with about 50 staff, partly funded by a £1.6m share placing. 01-Oct-2004 Zen Wallcoverings, the Lancashire-based wallpaper manufacturer, has been acquired by The Heritage Print Company, securing the future of 52 staff. 01-Oct-2004 Wilkinson Special Projects of Warrington has been bought of administration by JHL Plant Hire, securing the future of 150 jobs. 01-Oct-2004 YooMedia is to acquire MMTV, the company with the contract to bring NHS Direct health information on to all four interactive digital TV platforms, from MultiMedia Television. 30-Sep-2004 Birlinn has acquired Tuckwell Press, the Scottish academic book publisher. 30-Sep-2004 Tulloch has acquired Las Plant, the Inverness-based heavy plant supplier with 24 staff, for undisclosed terms. 30-Sep-2004 Capital Radio and GWR have confirmed plans for a £711m merger, in order to create a national commercial radio network better able to compete with the BBC. 30-Sep-2004 Portman Film & TV is to be acquired by the chairman of Chrysalis for undisclosed terms. 30-Sep-2004 BAe Systems is to acquire Alphatech, the US software engineering company with 322 staff, for £49m. 29-Sep-2004 MSB International has acquired Elite Computer Staff, the Surrey-based technology recruitment company with 20 staff, for an initial £1.2m. 29-Sep-2004 Centrica has acquired Residential Services Group, the US home maintenance company with 2,000 staff, for £83m, in order to expand its Direct Energy subsidiary. 29-Sep-2004 Huveaux has acquired ATP-Egora, the French publisher of medical magazines, from France Telecom for £0.3m. 28-Sep-2004 Smart & Cook has acquired Lindo & Tindale, the Stockton-based insurance broker, and the combined business is expected to be merged into larger premises in 2005. 28-Sep-2004 RMC, the building materials company, is set to be acquired by Cemex of Mexico for £2.3bn. 28-Sep-2004 Thebrickbusiness, the brick manufacturer with 680 staff at nine sites, is to be acquired by Wienerberger of Austria for £100m. 28-Sep-2004 DCC is to acquire Shell Direct UK, the fuel distributor with 500 staff, for £14m. 28-Sep-2004 Tor Coatings has bought Blackfriars, the Bristol-based paints supplier, out of administration, securing the future of 45 jobs. 27-Sep-2004 Active Hotels of Cambridge has sold its hotel reservations business to Priceline.com of the US for about £90m. 27-Sep-2004 Centrica has acquired Telco Global, the telecoms company, for £43m, gaining access to 238,000 fixed-line residential customers. 27-Sep-2004 Collins Stewart has confirmed a deal to acquire Prebon Yamane for £125m, in order to expand its Tullett broking business. 27-Sep-2004 Lloyds British Testing has acquired Rumney Crane, the Swansea-based lifting equipment company with £2m annual turnover. 27-Sep-2004 Photo-Scan, the closed-circuit security company, is to be acquired by Siemens for £32m. 27-Sep-2004 SSL International is to sell Silipos, its US-based prosthetic products business, to Langer for £9m. 24-Sep-2004 Armour Group has acquired Hi-End, the London-based developer of home automation systems, for £1.8m. 24-Sep-2004 Alphamosaic, the Cambridge-based semiconductor company, has been acquired by Broadcom of the US in a £67m deal. 24-Sep-2004 Canisp has acquired the fixed line customer base and the non-geographic number services of International Telecom Brokers for £2.5m, in order to expand its Airtime division. 23-Sep-2004 Bill Goff Golf Tours has acquired Longshot Golf from First Choice Holidays, as part of a strategy to expand its golf tour operations in continental Europe. 23-Sep-2004 Dairy Crest has announced a £4m deal to buy out its partners in the English Butter Marketing Company. 23-Sep-2004 Local Radio Company has acquired Dune FM, the west Lancashire radio station, from Forward Media for £1.2m. 23-Sep-2004 Pfizer is to acquire Meridica, the Cambridge-based drug delivery company, from PA Consulting for £70m. 23-Sep-2004 Cumbrian Industrials, the Penrith-based construction company with 196 staff, has been acquired by Hanson Aggregates. 22-Sep-2004 Scipher is to sell CRL Opto, the manufacturer of optoelectronic products, to a new company called CRLO Displays for £2.2m. 22-Sep-2004 Baxters Food Group has acquired SoupExperts, the Canadian supplier of condensed soup with 100 staff. 22-Sep-2004 Golden Prospect has acquired Ambrian Partners, the London-based investment banking and brokerage firm focused on the mining and metals sector, for £2.2m. 21-Sep-2004 Headlam Group has acquired Kingsmead Carpets, the carpet supplier, for £0.4m. 21-Sep-2004 Wealth Management Software has acquired the property management software business of GVA Grimley for £0.9m, which will involve the relocation of 14 staff to the WMS office in London. 21-Sep-2004 Flowtech, the Skelmersdale-based pneumatic and hydraulics company, has undergone a £42m management buy-out backed by venture capital firm Gresham. 21-Sep-2004 Hotgroup is to acquire Workthing, the online recruitment business, from Guardian Media Group for £6m. 21-Sep-2004 Shore Recycling, the Perth-based fridge recycling company, has undergone a £19m management buy-out backed by Royal Bank of Scotland. 20-Sep-2004 Browne Group, the Leicester-based chemical instruments company with 65 staff, has been acquired by Steris Corporation of the US for undisclosed terms. 20-Sep-2004 Eldridge Pope is to return to private ownership in a £42m deal that will involve a £14m investment in its chain of 151 pubs. 20-Sep-2004 West Private Equity has sold Southern Cross Healthcare, the operator of 160 care homes, to Blackstone of the US for £162m. 20-Sep-2004 Geest is to acquire Anglia Crown, the supplier of meals to hospitals with sites in Colchester and Manchester, for £14m. 17-Sep-2004 JW Fidler & Son, the Manchester-based wholesaler of food and equipment with 70 staff, has undergone a management buy-in. 17-Sep-2004 Avingtrans has acquired Stainless Metalcraft, the Cambridgeshire-based supplier of fabricated and machined products for diagnostic imagery, from Ferraris Group for £8.1m. 16-Sep-2004 T Clarke has acquired Anglia Electrical Services, the Kings Lynn-based electrical contractor with 35 staff, for £2.1m. 16-Sep-2004 HSS is to sell its RentX tool hire operations in the US, and the proceeds will be invested in its UK operations. 16-Sep-2004 Experian has acquired Ireland Direct Communications, the direct marketing company, and the business will operate as Experian's marketing services division in Ireland. 15-Sep-2004 Oxford Instruments is to acquire Metorex International, the Finland-based instrumentation company, for an initial £3.3m. 14-Sep-2004 St Ives has acquired SP Group, the printing company with almost 400 staff at sites in Redditch and Birmingham, for £33m. 14-Sep-2004 Air Music & Media has acquired Redworth, the supplier of CDs, cassettes, videos, DVDs and software to retailers, for an initial £27m. 14-Sep-2004 Entertainment Rights has acquired Tell-Tale Productions, the producer of children's TV programmes, for £3.1m. 14-Sep-2004 Civica has acquired Radius, the supplier of financial software applications to local government with offices in Feltham, Watford and Altrincham, for £14m. 14-Sep-2004 Adria, the County Tyrone-based clothing company, is to merge with international textiles firm Quantum. 14-Sep-2004 GSM Group has acquired the assets of Abbot Brown, the recently-closed Dorset-based manufacturer of labels and fascia products, which will result in the creation of 28 new jobs in Yorkshire. 14-Sep-2004 Qinetiq is to acquire Westar Aerospace & Defense, the US arms testing company, for £72m. 14-Sep-2004 Femcare, the health care company with 70 staff in Nottingham and Southampton, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Barclays Private Equity for undisclosed terms. 14-Sep-2004 Laird has acquired Home Doors and Houseproud, both parts of the BHD Group, for £3.6m, securing the future of more than 300 jobs in Peterlee. 13-Sep-2004 Babcock International has acquired Turner & Partners, the provider of construction management services to mobile telecom network operators, for £4m. 13-Sep-2004 Cobbetts has acquired Walker Charlesworth & Foster, the Leeds-based law firm specialising in housing associations. 13-Sep-2004 BAe Systems is to acquire DigitalNet, the US supplier of computer systems, for £333m. 13-Sep-2004 Celotex, the foam insulation manufacturer, has undergone a £20m management buy-out backed by ABN Amro Capital. 13-Sep-2004 WPP is to acquire Grey Global, the US advertising agency, for £845m. 13-Sep-2004 Communisis has acquired Dataform, the Newcastle-based print management company, for £22m. 13-Sep-2004 Media Square is to acquire Coutts, the retail communications company, for £22m. 13-Sep-2004 Ashtenne has sold the Port of Boston in Lincolnshire to Victoria Wharf for £5m. 13-Sep-2004 RM has acquired Technology Teaching Systems, the supplier of school curriculum aids, for £11m. 13-Sep-2004 Extreme Group has acquired Legends Surf Shops out of administration, and plans to rebrand and reopen the stores. 13-Sep-2004 Fact Based Communications has acquired Diverse, the independent TV production company with 30 staff, for about £8m. 13-Sep-2004 Offshore Crane Engineering of Aberdeen has been bought out of provisional liquidation by TSI, saving 52 jobs. 13-Sep-2004 Hyder Consulting has completed the acquisition of Marcus Hodges Environment, the environmental consultancy with 40 staff at offices in Exeter, Truro and Bristol, for £1.8m. 10-Sep-2004 Century Homes has acquired Timber Frame Solutions, the Northumberland-based timber frame maker, and plans to double its 40-strong workforce. 10-Sep-2004 Qinetiq is planning to acquire Foster-Miller, the US engineering and advanced materials company, for £92m. 10-Sep-2004 Harvey & Thompson, the pawnbroker with 57 outlets, has been acquired by the Rutland Fund for £49m. 09-Sep-2004 Real Affinity has acquired Evolve Sport, the sports development and coaching company, in order to expand its Navigator business. 09-Sep-2004 Enterprise is to acquire MRS Environmental Services, the provider of street cleaning and refuse collection services to local authorities in London and the south east, for £14m. 09-Sep-2004 Alumasc has acquired Timloc Building Products of Goole from Expamet International for £3.3m. 08-Sep-2004 BDE Group has acquired Object Group, the London-based software solutions company, creating a combined business with a workforce of 55. 08-Sep-2004 Chadwick Lawrence is to merge with Steven Bonfield Solicitors, creating a combined law firm with about 155 staff and six offices across West Yorkshire. 08-Sep-2004 Computer Software Group is to acquire Advatech Computer Systems of Liverpool for £2.7m and Pinnacle Computer Systems of Watford for an initial £1.8m. 07-Sep-2004 Integrated Asset Management is to acquire International Capital Markets, the Italian money broking company, for an initial £1m. 07-Sep-2004 Iomart has acquired Easyspace, the Surrey-based internet hosting company, for £12m. 07-Sep-2004 Flashback Television has acquired Double Exposure, the Clerkenwell-based TV production company. 07-Sep-2004 Creston is to acquire CML Research, the London-based market research company, for up to £7.8m. 06-Sep-2004 Wolseley has acquired Klockner, the Austrian steel stockholder, as well as US-based fire equipment company Clark Group and home appliances distributor Cline Contract Sales. 06-Sep-2004 NXT has sold its Cyrus Electronics subsidiary to a management buy-out for £0.7m. 06-Sep-2004 Joseph Dawson, the cashmere textiles company, has undergone a £6.6m management buy-out from Dawson International, and will transfer its headquarters from Scotland to Yorkshire. 06-Sep-2004 Maplin, the chain of more than 80 electronics stores, has undergone a £244m buy-out backed by Montagu Private Equity for £244m. 06-Sep-2004 SBJ has acquired the financial services division of Miller Insurance Investments for undisclosed terms, which will involve the transfer of 36 staff to the London office of SBJ. 06-Sep-2004 Napier Brown Foods has acquired Renshaw Scott, the manufacturer of baking ingredients with 175 staff at sites in Liverpool and Carluke, for £18m. 03-Sep-2004 Daily Mail & General Trust has acquired Bargain Pages Media, the publisher of classified advertising newspapers in the West Midlands, for £8.5m. 03-Sep-2004 Graphite Capital has backed a management buy-in at JT Frith, the wholesale warehouse club with sites in the Midlands and Yorkshire, for undisclosed terms. 03-Sep-2004 Polestar has sold its packaging and label operations to a new company called Boxstar, which will involve the transfer of 350 staff. 03-Sep-2004 Paymentshield, the Southport-based wholesale mortgage insurance company with 200 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for about £36m. 03-Sep-2004 Lloyds TSB Development Capital has backed a management buy-out of the Northumberland-based pharmaceutical business of BASF, creating a new company called Aesica Pharmaceuticals with 140 staff. 03-Sep-2004 JT Dove has acquired Auckland Timber & Builders Merchants of Bishop Auckland, taking its chain to seven branches. 03-Sep-2004 Bupa Care Services has acquired Carrick Care Homes, the Scottish operator of 12 care homes with 700 staff, for undisclosed terms. 03-Sep-2004 Broker Network Holdings has acquired Ewen C Mair & Co of Castle Douglas for undisclosed terms. 02-Sep-2004 Polaron has acquired Ilight Group, the manufacturer of lighting control products, for £1.7m. 02-Sep-2004 Monowa Manufacturing, the manufacturer of movable walls, has been acquired by Accordial Group, and additional staff are being recruited at Monowa's plant in south Wales. 02-Sep-2004 Brandon Hire has acquired Delco, the chain of seven tool hire branches in London, Manchester and Southampton, for £4m. 02-Sep-2004 Media Square has acquired Charles McKay Walpole, the London-based advertising agency, for £5.3m. 02-Sep-2004 Osmetech is to acquire Molecular Sensing, the Melksham-based genetic analysis company, for £3.1m. 02-Sep-2004 Venture Production is to acquire five North Sea oil blocks from Marubeni Oil & Gas for £28m. 02-Sep-2004 Humdinger has acquired A Taste of Luxury, the Plymouth-based biscuit importer, for undisclosed terms. 01-Sep-2004 Xenova has sold its biopharmaceuticals manufacturing facility in Canada to QSV Biologicals for £3m. 01-Sep-2004 Dicom is to acquire Topcall of Austria for £27m, in order to expand its electronic information business. 01-Sep-2004 National Grid Transco has sold its four regional gas pipeline businesses for £5.8bn, with Scottish & Southern acquiring networks in Scotland and the south of England, Cheung Kong acquiring the north and Macquarie acquiring the west and Wales. 01-Sep-2004 Go-Ahead is to acquire Virgin Aviation's 50% stake in their Plane Handling air cargo joint venture for £20m, in order to expand its Aviance subsidiary. 01-Sep-2004 Bunzl has acquired TSN, the US supplier of disposable goods, for undisclosed terms. 01-Sep-2004 Royal London Private Equity has backed a £34m management buy-out at McKenzie Group, the operator of Academy-branded music venues in Brixton, Birmingham, Liverpool, Glasgow, Bristol, Islington and Shepherd's Bush. 01-Sep-2004 Aroma & Fine Chemicals, the manufacturer of fragrances, has been sold by Close Brothers Private Equity to Octel of the US for £21m. 31-Aug-2004 Robert Prettie & Co, the Nottingham-based plumbing and heating company with 340 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 31-Aug-2004 Technology Services Group has acquired Baron Corporate Systems, the Leeds-based software company. 31-Aug-2004 Laird has acquired Advanced Metal Technologies, the US window security company, for £3.1m. 30-Aug-2004 Oakdale Bakeries, the cake manufacturer with sites in Morley, Wigan and Doncaster, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 30-Aug-2004 Moss Pharmacy has acquired Joyce Morrison, the chain of 17 pharmacies in Scotland, for undisclosed terms. 30-Aug-2004 Sea Containers has sold Folkestone Harbour to the chairman of the Saga Group for £11m. 27-Aug-2004 Public Recruitment Group has acquired Action First Recruitment Consultants, the London-based provider of social workers with 24 staff, for an initial £11m. 27-Aug-2004 Connaught has acquired Gas Care Central Heating and Building Services Training, two Caerphilly-based suppliers of services to the social housing sector, for £1.6m. 27-Aug-2004 Homeserve has sold Onsite South, the Slough-based plumbing maintenance company, to Waterflow Holdings for £3m. 26-Aug-2004 Northmace has acquired Hendon International, the London-based supplier of equipment to hotels, for undisclosed terms. 26-Aug-2004 Spring Grove Property Maintenance is to be acquired by Park Street, the investment vehicle of Mount Street, for £5.4m. 26-Aug-2004 Monstermob has acquired 9 Squared, the US-based supplier of mobile entertainment services, for an initial £1.6m. 26-Aug-2004 Blair Plant & Civil Engineers of Norfolk has been bought out of administration by a management team, securing the future of 30 jobs. 25-Aug-2004 Latimer Trend, the Plymouth-based printing company, has undergone a management buy-out. 25-Aug-2004 Anglo American is to acquire Johnston Group, the aggregates and engineering company, for £53m, having beaten a rival offer from Ennstone. 25-Aug-2004 London Scottish Bank has acquired certain assets of Morse's, the personal loans company with 500 staff, for an initial £10m. 24-Aug-2004 Laird has acquired Centurion Wireless Technologies, the US supplier of mobile handset antennae, for £107m, while its Laird Plastics division has been sold to Blackfriars Corporation for £36m. 24-Aug-2004 CI Traders is to acquire ComProp for £51m, in order to expand its property development operations on the Channel Islands. 24-Aug-2004 ARM Holdings is to acquire Artisan Components, the US technology company, for £502m. 24-Aug-2004 Future Network has acquired the PC Zone and Computer & Video Games magazines from Dennis Publishing for £2.5m. 24-Aug-2004 Eclipse Scientific, the food testing company with 200 staff at eight laboratories, has undergone a management buy-out from Swan Group for undisclosed terms. 23-Aug-2004 American Golf Discount Centre has been acquired by a management buy-in team for about £40m, and now plans to expand its chain of 61 stores with about 25 new sites over the next five years. 23-Aug-2004 Tesco has sold the Dillons chain of 181 newsagent shops to TM Retail for undisclosed terms. 23-Aug-2004 Video Island is to merge with Screen Select to create the country's largest online DVD rental company. 23-Aug-2004 Fuji Seal Europe, the shrink-wrap packaging company, is doubling its manufacturing, printing and warehousing facilities at the Gillingham Business Park in Kent, with the creation of 70 jobs over the next three years. 20-Aug-2004 Countrywide has acquired Freeman Forman, the chain of 14 estate agency branches in East Sussex and Kent. 20-Aug-2004 Multifabs, the Aberdeen-based supplier of survival wear with 115 staff, has been acquired by CHC Helicopters of Canada for £7.2m. 20-Aug-2004 Barclays has acquired Juniper, the US credit card company, from CIBC for £160m. 19-Aug-2004 Connaught has acquired Maginnis, the Glasgow-based maintenance services company with 162 staff, for £2.5m. 19-Aug-2004 Bradford & Bingley is to sell Charcol Aitchison & Colegrave and Charcol Holden Meehan, which have aggregate net assets of about £5.6m, to John Scott & Partners of Marlow. 18-Aug-2004 Business Systems Group has acquired the managed hosting and maintenance operations of Global Network Solutions, involving the transfer of 14 staff. 18-Aug-2004 Survitec, the supplier of survival technology, has undergone a £146m management buy-out backed by Montagu Private Equity. 18-Aug-2004 Shell has sold its fuels business in Peru, including service stations, industrial and marine fuels, to Empressa Nacional del Petroleo of Chile for undisclosed terms. 18-Aug-2004 ARM Holdings is to acquire Axys Design Automation, the US supplier of system modelling and simulation solutions with 26 staff. 17-Aug-2004 Real Affinity has acquired Holly Benson Communications, the corporate marketing specialist with offices in Swindon, Oxford and Milton Keynes, for an initial £1.2m. 17-Aug-2004 Public Recruitment Group has acquired TeachLondon, the London-based provider of permanent and temporary teaching staff to 200 schools, for an initial £3.8m. 17-Aug-2004 Unwins Seeds, the Histon-based seed packing company, is to be acquired by Westland Horticulture of County Tyrone, securing the future of more than 50 jobs. 17-Aug-2004 Speedy Hire has acquired Coates Rentair UK, the power generation equipment hire company, for £6.7m. 17-Aug-2004 Spirent has sold MRO, its aerospace maintenance software business, to management for £2.9m. 17-Aug-2004 GKN is to sell its 50% stake in Aerosystems International, the avionics and software company with 400 staff, to joint venture partner BAe Systems for £14m. 17-Aug-2004 Barclays has acquired a 50% stake in Intelenet Global Services, the Indian business process outsourcing company, for £19m. 17-Aug-2004 Norwich Union has acquired HPI, the Salisbury-based provider of vehicle status checking services, for £120m. 17-Aug-2004 Sainsbury has acquired Jacksons Stores, the chain of 114 convenience stores in Yorkshire and the Midlands, for about £100m. 17-Aug-2004 Grovefield Finance has acquired Norfolk & Suffolk Finance, the Lowestoft-based commercial finance firm with 14 staff. 16-Aug-2004 Babtie, the Glasgow-based engineering consultancy with 3,500 staff, has been acquired by Jacobs Engineering of the US for about £90m. 16-Aug-2004 Tikit Group has acquired Lecsoft, the French provider of IT services to law firms, for £0.7m. 16-Aug-2004 Microgen is planning to acquire AFA Systems, the financial software supplier, for £7.2m. 16-Aug-2004 United Co-operatives has acquired Quality Fare, the chain of 19 convenience stores in the north-east, for £38m. 16-Aug-2004 Keenpac Group has secured £8.3m from Bank of Scotland Corporate to fund the acquisition of Walsh & Jenkins, the Kent-based packaging company. 13-Aug-2004 Senior is to sell five industrial hose operations in the UK, US, Sweden, Holland and France, to Hose Acquisition Company for £8.3m. 13-Aug-2004 BBA Group is to acquire Execair, the provider of passenger handling, flight planning and ground transportation services, from John Menzies for £12m, in order to expand its Signature Flight Support subsidiary. 13-Aug-2004 Henderson Private Capital is to acquire Boat International Publications, Sailing Today and Coast Living, in a £33m deal that will create a leading yacht magazine publishing business. 13-Aug-2004 ECI Partners has acquired M&M Sports, the online and mail order retailer of discounted branded sports and leisure goods, for undisclosed terms. 13-Aug-2004 Mobileway is to merge with InphoMatch of the US to create a combined mobile content and messaging interoperability business with about 200 staff. 13-Aug-2004 Amec has acquired Generale Maintenance Services, the French maintenance and mechanical engineering company with 40 staff, for £0.3m. 12-Aug-2004 Dairy Farmers of Britain is to acquire Associated Co-Operative Creameries, which has 3,500 staff at sites in Whitby, Cardiff, Llangadog, Llandrynog, Portsmouth, Cricket St Thomas and Nantwich, for £75m. 12-Aug-2004 Occam Direct Marketing, the Bath-based provider of data management services with 80 staff, has undergone a £12m management buy-out backed by ISIS Equity Partners. 11-Aug-2004 Torex Retail is to acquire KPOS Computer Systems, the distributor of point-of-sale software, for £8.7m. 11-Aug-2004 Supporta is to acquire Quality Care, the care provider, for £3.3m, and Parys Snowdon, the provider of back office services to the NHS, for £1.6m. 11-Aug-2004 Skipton Building Society has sold Industrial Equipment Finance to Hitachi Capital for £4.4m. 10-Aug-2004 Beswick Paper, the Oldbury-based paper merchant with 150 staff at branches in Birmingham, Northampton, Cheltenham, Leicester, Crewe, Hertford and Newport, has undergone a management buy-in for undisclosed terms. 10-Aug-2004 Qinetiq is set to acquire HVR Consulting Services, the Hampshire-based defence consultancy, for up to £13m. 10-Aug-2004 Pipex Communications is to acquire Accent UK, the internet service provider that trades as Nildram, for £13m. 10-Aug-2004 Synstar, the IT services company, is to be acquired by Hewlett-Packard for £163m. 10-Aug-2004 Cabouchon is to sell its jewellery operations to management and acquire motion picture company Seven Arts Filmed Entertainment in a £4.8m reverse takeover. 10-Aug-2004 Invensys is to sell APV Baker Goldsboro, its US bakery equipment division, to Turkington Industries for £5.4m. 10-Aug-2004 Emap has acquired the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival from WJB Chiltern Trust for £52m. 10-Aug-2004 Athlone Extrusions, the plastics manufacturer, has undergone a management buy-out from Quinn Group of Fermanagh for an estimated £36m. 09-Aug-2004 Tellings Golden Miller is to acquire Arriva's bus operations in Colchester, which will involve the transfer of almost 100 staff. 09-Aug-2004 European Motor Holdings has sold its Mill Audi car dealership in Sunderland to Colebrook & Burgess for £2.1m. 09-Aug-2004 AWJ Glass is to set up a new £2.1m glass processing factory in Scarborough, with the creation of 15 jobs. 09-Aug-2004 Huntsworth is to acquire Avenue Healthcare Knowledge Management, the London-based PR and medical education company, from Blackwell Science for an initial £1.4m. 09-Aug-2004 Gaming International, the greyhound stadium operator, is to undergo a £14m management buy-out. 09-Aug-2004 Millfield is planning to merge with Inter-Alliance, creating a combined independent financial advisory group with 1,850 advisers. 09-Aug-2004 Georgica is to sell its 32 Burger King restaurants to Cairnserve Northwest for £4.7m, in order to focus on cue sports and bowling centres. 06-Aug-2004 Barratt Developments is to sell its US housebuilding operations to Barratt Investments for £91m, and the proceeds will be invested in urban renewal projects in the UK. 06-Aug-2004 UBC Media is to acquire Smooth Operations, the independent regional radio producer with offices in Cambridge and Manchester, for an initial £1.8m. 06-Aug-2004 PSD Group has acquired Portfolio International, the executive recruitment consultancy, from Prime People for £1.9m. 06-Aug-2004 Wilco Motor Spares has acquired Motosave, the automotive shop chain with 190 staff at 24 workshops and 23 shops in northern England, for undisclosed terms. 06-Aug-2004 AskAlix, the Teesside-based internet business directory with 70 staff, has been acquired by a new company called Enable Media for undisclosed terms. 06-Aug-2004 Manor Farm Ducklings, the Norfolk-based poultry firm with annual turnover of £17m, has been bought out of administration by MFD Foods. 06-Aug-2004 Farago, the knitwear firm, and Apex Dyers & Finishers have been bought out of administration by a new company called Farago Group. 06-Aug-2004 Future Network has acquired Spanish Homes Magazine for £1.5m, as part of a strategy to buy special-interest titles. 05-Aug-2004 Groupe Pathfinder, the Merseyside-based microwave radio technology company, has been acquired by SIAE Microelectronica of Italy for £1m, and the 25-strong workforce is expected to double over the next two years. 05-Aug-2004 Vibro, the Preston-based civil engineer, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 05-Aug-2004 Charles Stanley is to acquire Tozer Wingate, the Plymouth-based corporate benefit consultancy, for up to £1.5m. 04-Aug-2004 Vega Group is to acquire Anite Systems, the German software company with 60 staff, from Anite Group for £7.5m. 04-Aug-2004 Royal Bank of Scotland is to acquire Lynk Systems, the US-based merchant acquiring business, for £288m. 04-Aug-2004 Scotmid is to acquire Dundee-based Morning Noon & Night's 50 stores across Scotland for about £30m. 04-Aug-2004 Wykeham Farrance, the supplier of geotechnical equipment, has been acquired by Controls of Italy. 04-Aug-2004 Hillarys Blinds, the made-to-measure blinds manufacturer, has been acquired by Change Capital for about £100m. 03-Aug-2004 Western Wines, the wine importer, has been acquired by Vincor of Canada for £135m. 03-Aug-2004 Aga Foodservice has acquired La Cornue, the French cooker manufacturer, from Nortek for £3.4m. 03-Aug-2004 Jarvis has sold its entire stake in Ultramast, the developer of mobile telephone radio masts, to Shere Group, a joint venture company formed by Babcock & Brown and four Ultramast managers, for £0.3m. 03-Aug-2004 Alumasc has acquired Roof-Pro, the Bedford-based building products company, for £3.7m. 03-Aug-2004 Brandon Hire has acquired U Hire of Merseyside and Hire-It Northern of County Durham for £0.7m and £0.2m respectively, taking its chain of tool hire outlets to 114. 03-Aug-2004 Speedy Hire has acquired the tool hire business of Multi Group for £7.2m, including ten tool hire depots and 23 temporary on-site facilities. 03-Aug-2004 Broker Network Holdings has acquired Mid-Pennine Insurance Services for £0.3m. 03-Aug-2004 Matrix Communications has acquired Bedrock Networks, Norwood Adam Systems and Norwood Adam Technical Services, which will increase its annual turnover by about £9m. 03-Aug-2004 Hyder Consulting has raised £3.1m in a share placing to fund three acquisitions - Roberts & Partners International of Dubai, Ashact and an unnamed environmental consultancy based in the UK. 03-Aug-2004 Queens Moat Houses, the chain of hotels in the UK, Germany and the Netherlands, is expected to be acquired by the Whitehall property fund of Goldman Sachs for about £544m. 03-Aug-2004 WH Smith is to sell its Hodder Headline publishing business to Hachette Livre of France for £210m, in order to focus on retail and news distribution. 03-Aug-2004 UKbetting has acquired In The Box Media, the media rights company and producer of video content for broadband, for an initial £0.3m. 02-Aug-2004 Quarto Group has acquired Aurum Press, the London-based book publisher with net assets of £0.8m. 02-Aug-2004 Medical Solutions is to acquire two medical laboratories in Dubai for £1.6m, including Dubai Medical Laboratories and Specialised Clinical Laboratories. 02-Aug-2004 Scipher has sold its carbon monoxide sensors business to Invensys for £1.2m. 02-Aug-2004 Enterprise has acquired JMPC, the provider of IT services to schools, for up to £4.2m. 02-Aug-2004 YooMedia is to acquire Whoosh Group, the mobile phone marketing and technology company with annual turnover of £0.3m. 02-Aug-2004 Lookers has acquired FPS Distribution, the wholesale distributor of vehicle parts to the automotive aftermarket, for £31m. 02-Aug-2004 Arriva is to acquire Wulff Bus, the Danish bus operator with 600 staff, for £10m. 02-Aug-2004 Skipton Building Society has acquired an 80% stake in Mutual One, the provider of compliance, internal audit and insurance services to building societies, for undisclosed terms. 02-Aug-2004 Johnson Service is to acquire Dimensions Holdings, the corporate wear supplier, from Gresham, for £22m. 02-Aug-2004 Eurogrind, the Pontardawe-based precision cutting tool manufacturer with 39 staff, has undergone a management buy-in, and is now looking to open sales offices in Germany, Spain, Italy, France and Belgium. 02-Aug-2004 MWL Print Group, the Pontypool-based print company with 140 staff, has undergone a management buy-out. 02-Aug-2004 Palletways, the Lichfield-based freight services company, has been acquired by Phoenix Equity Partners. 02-Aug-2004 Atlantic Airlines, the Coventry-based cargo company with 75 staff, has undergone a management buy-out. 02-Aug-2004 PDQ Engineering has undergone a management buy-out from Washington Envelopes for undisclosed terms, and is now looking to expand the 45-strong workforce. 02-Aug-2004 DJ Tool Hire has undergone a management buy-out, and is planning to expand its chain of six tool hire outlets to 30 over the next five years. 02-Aug-2004 Demon Tweeks Direct, the motorsport equipment supplier, has undergone a management buy-out, and is now planning to open stores across the country. 02-Aug-2004 Brightview Group, the internet service provider, has been acquired by Invox for £25m. 02-Aug-2004 Wyevale Garden Centres has acquired Great Park Nurseries, the operator of Jack's Patch Garden Centre in Devon, for £4m. 02-Aug-2004 Tepnel Life Sciences is to acquire Diaclone Research, the French supplier of monoclonal antibodies, from OPi for £1.6m. 02-Aug-2004 Metal Bulletin is to acquire Avalon Research, the US-based equity research company, for up to £11m. 02-Aug-2004 Wolseley is to acquire Brooks Group, the Irish builders' merchant with 18 branches, from UPM-Kymmene for £120m. 02-Aug-2004 British American Tobacco is to sell Etinera, its Italian distribution business, to Altadis for £390m. 02-Aug-2004 Royal & Sun Alliance has sold its life assurance operations to Resolution Life Group for £850m. 02-Aug-2004 Scottish & Southern Energy has bought the Ferrybridge and Fiddler's Ferry coal-fired power stations from AEP, in a deal worth £250m. 02-Aug-2004 Motion Media, the communications provider, is to undergo a reverse takeover by Scotty of Austria. 30-Jul-2004 United Co-operatives has acquired Cheers Shropshire, the Oswestry-based chain of 12 Neighbours convenience stores with 200 staff. 30-Jul-2004 Integrated Dental Holdings, the chain of 130 dental practices, has agreed terms for a £12m management buy-out. 29-Jul-2004 TVR, the Blackpool-based sports car manufacturer with 400 staff, has been acquired by a Russian businessman, and a substantial investment is expected to expand the company into North America. 28-Jul-2004 Glisten has acquired a toffee production line in North Shields from House of York for £0.1m. 27-Jul-2004 British Vita has acquired the remaining 50% of its Canadian foam products business for £15m. 27-Jul-2004 Virtue Broadcasting is to merge with World Television Group, in a £18m deal designed to increase their share of the corporate communications market. 27-Jul-2004 Abbey National is to be acquired by Santander Central Hispano, the Spanish bank, for £8bn. 27-Jul-2004 Tenon Group is to acquire Premier Strategies, the tax planning company, for an initial £2m, as well as business services practices in Rochdale and Bacup. 26-Jul-2004 Johnson Matthey is to sell its pigments and dispersions business, which has 280 staff in the UK and Australia, to Rockwood Specialties for £27m. 26-Jul-2004 Whitbread has acquired the Premier Lodge chain of 141 budget hotels and 19 pub restaurants from Spirit for £536m. 26-Jul-2004 United Biscuits is to acquire the UK biscuit operations of Danone for about £240m, including factories in Liverpool and Leicester. 26-Jul-2004 Asquith Court is to merge with Kids Unlimited, creating a combined group of 145 day nurseries under the name of Nursery Years Group. 26-Jul-2004 Associated British Foods has acquired Burns Philp, the Australian yeast, herbs and spices company, for £730m. 23-Jul-2004 Hawkshead, the outdoor clothing retailer with 12 stores and 16 concessions, has undergone a management buy-in from Retail Variations for undisclosed terms. 23-Jul-2004 Highams Systems Services is to acquire RWP, the IT recruitment company, for £2m. 22-Jul-2004 Center Parcs is to sell its 3D children's activity holiday business to PGL for £12m. 21-Jul-2004 Legal & General Ventures is to acquire Total Fitness, the chain of fitness clubs, for about £80m. 21-Jul-2004 Regus has agreed to acquire HQ Global, the US serviced office company with 263 sites, for £163m. 19-Jul-2004 Royal & Sun Alliance has sold its general insurance operations in Pakistan to International General Insurance for £0.7m. 19-Jul-2004 Havelock Europa is to acquire Clean Air, the Bolton-based educational supplies company, for up to £6.3m. 19-Jul-2004 First Choice has acquired StudentCity, the US-based student holidays company, for £23m. 19-Jul-2004 Aviva has sold its Your Move estate agency and surveying operations to a management buy-out backed by Barclays Private Equity for £42m. 19-Jul-2004 Specsavers has acquired Tva Bla, the Swedish chain of 19 opticians with annual sales of £9m. 19-Jul-2004 Mackays Stores is planning to expand its chain of 260 discount fashion stores with 50 new outlets. 19-Jul-2004 Huntsworth is to acquire Ergo Communications Services, the London-based strategic public affairs and corporate communications company, for £2m. 15-Jul-2004 Exeter Investment Group is to be acquired by Iimia of Bournemouth for about £19m, which will involve the transfer of 120 Exeter-based staff. 15-Jul-2004 Murston Plant, the Ashford-based hire company with 40 staff, has been acquired by GSE Plant. 15-Jul-2004 Reed Elsevier is to acquire Seisint, the US supplier of public record and risk management information, for £417m. 15-Jul-2004 Country Artists, the designer and distributor of quality giftware products with 150 staff at sites in Wellesbourne, Stratford upon Avon and the US, has undergone a management buy-out backed by ISIS Equity Partners. 14-Jul-2004 Inflexion is to sell Ster Century, the operator of seven cinema sites, to a management buy-out for £32m. 14-Jul-2004 Johnson Matthey is to acquire Lancaster Synthesis, the organic chemicals supplier with manufacturing facilities in Morecambe and 225 staff worldwide, from Clariant for £14m. 14-Jul-2004 Rok Property Solutions has acquired John Dickie Construction, which operates in the central belt of Scotland, from John Dickie Group for £0.8m. 14-Jul-2004 Quarto has acquired Creative Publishing international, the US publisher of how-to books, for about £5m. 14-Jul-2004 KPMG has sold Lotus and FII, the Northampton-based shoe manufacturer, out of administration to Jacobson Group of Lancashire, securing the future of 40 jobs. 14-Jul-2004 Paperchase, the chain of 61 stationery stores, has been sold by Graphite Capital to Borders for £19m. 14-Jul-2004 Community Broking Group has acquired Carpenter Rees Jackson, the Manchester-based financial planning practice, for £0.7m. 13-Jul-2004 FFastFill has acquired Future Dynamics, the software company with offices in London and Chicago and annual turnover of £2m. 13-Jul-2004 Reg Vardy has completed the £5m acquisition of the Renault car dealership in Leeds from Renault Retail Group. 13-Jul-2004 Astron has acquired the Nottingham-based print and mail division of Experian, and the 109 staff are expected to be offered relocation to other Astron sites. 13-Jul-2004 Paramount Hotels, the operator of 13 four-star hotels, has been sold by Alchemy Partners to Dawnay Shore Hotels for £215m. 13-Jul-2004 Electra Partners Europe is to sell Safety-Kleen, the supplier of cleaning equipment, to US private equity firm JP Morgan Partners for £280m. 13-Jul-2004 HSBC has acquired Marks & Spencer Retail Financial Services for £762m, but M&S will retain 50% of the earnings from the store cards. 13-Jul-2004 Clipper Ventures is to acquire Zapcat Racing, the operator of power boat racing events, for up to £0.5m. 12-Jul-2004 Thus is to sell its call centre operations in Glasgow, Livingston and Horsham to Response Handling for £4m, which will involve the transfer of 961 staff. 12-Jul-2004 Greene King has bought 432 pubs from the Laurel Pub Company for £654m, taking its estate to 2,100 sites. 12-Jul-2004 Wilshaw has sold its magnet manufacturing operations to a management buy-out for £0.9m. 12-Jul-2004 Tarsus Group has expanded its media and exhibitions business with two acquisitions in France, including SECA for £1.3m and Solutions Linux for £2.1m. 12-Jul-2004 MG Rover is to sell its car parts business to Caterpillar Logistics Services for more than £100m, which will involve the transfer of 29 staff and the retention by Caterpillar of the 390 Leicestershire-based staff already working on the contract. 12-Jul-2004 Royal Bank of Scotland has acquired Hanco, the operator of 5,000 cash machines, for about £80m. 12-Jul-2004 Snow & Rock, the operator of 11 outdoor clothing stores, has been acquired by the founder of the Forever Friends brand for undisclosed terms. 12-Jul-2004 Eliza Tinsley has acquired MH Berlyn Group, the Cradley Heath-based supplier of consumer products with 70 staff, for £2.2m. 09-Jul-2004 Radstone Technology has acquired Octec, the Bracknell-based supplier of image processors and video trackers, for £14m. 09-Jul-2004 RPS has acquired Cambrian, the provider of oil industry asset evaluation services with 35 staff, for up to £2.9m. 09-Jul-2004 Claro Precision Engineering of Knaresborough has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms, and the 50-strong workforce is expected to expand. 09-Jul-2004 Marconi is to sell Outside Plant & Power, its US plant and power systems business, to Emerson Electric for £221m. 08-Jul-2004 Napier Brown Foods has acquired James Budgett Sugars, the sugar processing company, from ED&F Man and Greencore for £17m. 08-Jul-2004 Tadpole Technology is to acquire Stream Theory, the US supplier of enterprise network software, for an initial £13m. 08-Jul-2004 Laird Group has acquired Lindman Group, the supplier of composite entrance doors, for an initial £3.2m. 08-Jul-2004 Homeserve is to sell Mail Solutions, the provider of print, envelope manufacture and mail fulfilment services, to Longmax Industries for £7.4m. 08-Jul-2004 DCC is to acquire Bottle Green, the Leeds-based wine supplier, for an initial £13m. 08-Jul-2004 Minerva Laboratories, the Cardiff-based supplier of dental equipment with 58 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 08-Jul-2004 Reg Vardy has acquired H Tones Vauxhall, the Hartlepool-based car dealership, for £3m. 08-Jul-2004 BNB Resources has acquired TCS Recruitment, the recruitment solutions company with offices in London, Manchester and Bristol, for an initial £4.1m. 07-Jul-2004 Eurocopy, the Yorkshire-based photocopier supplier, is to undergo a management buy-out for £18m. 07-Jul-2004 Sytner has acquired Porsche, Ferrari and Maserati car dealerships in Edinburgh from Glenvarigill for undisclosed terms, leaving Glenvarigill to focus on new Audi dealerships in Edinburgh and Stirling. 07-Jul-2004 Pleasurewood Hills, the leisure park near Lowestoft with 26 permanent and 200 seasonal staff, has been acquired by Grevin & Cie of France for undisclosed terms. 07-Jul-2004 Rand Group has acquired the road planing operations of Associated Asphalt for undisclosed terms, which will involve the transfer of 32 Oxfordshire-based staff. 07-Jul-2004 Iris Software, the supplier of accountancy software, has undergone a £102m management buy-out backed by HgCapital. 07-Jul-2004 Doughty Hanson is to sell the design and manufacturing division of Dunlop Standard Aerospace to Meggitt for £408m, while the engine repair operations are being sold to US buy-out firm Carlyle. 06-Jul-2004 Ultra Electronics is to acquire the airline and airport IT systems business of Videcom International, which has 20 staff at an office in Henley-on-Thames, for £1.5m. 06-Jul-2004 Magal Engineering has acquired Portland Pressing, the Birmingham-based manufacturer of grilles and other metal pressings for the motor industry, for undisclosed terms. 06-Jul-2004 Aquascot, the Alness-based salmon and trout processing company with 120 staff, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Bank of Scotland. 06-Jul-2004 Longhirst Group has acquired WTI Training Group, the Derby-based provider of technical and skills training to public sector workers, for undisclosed terms. 06-Jul-2004 Public Recruitment Group, the provider of doctors and teachers, is to acquire Academy Supply Agency, which has offices in Liverpool, Leeds and Manchester, for £4.7m. 06-Jul-2004 Highway Insurance has acquired A Quote Insurance Services, the Andover-based personal lines broker, for £4.6m. 06-Jul-2004 Rutland Fund has acquired Uskmouth Power Company, the operator of the Fifoots coal-fired power station at Newport in South Wales, and will restart the site with a workforce of about 100. 06-Jul-2004 Symphonix, the Huntingdon-based manufacturer of loudspeakers, is to be acquired by Fundamental-e Investments for £0.4m. 05-Jul-2004 Fitzpatrick Doorframes has merged with FW Watkins to create a combined Birmingham-based industrial doors and shutters business with annual sales of £2.5m. 05-Jul-2004 PD Ports, the owner of deep-water ports including Tees and Hartlepool, is expected to be acquired by Collins Stewart for up to £500m. 05-Jul-2004 Risk Capital Partners has acquired Mayfair Bingo, the operator of six Riva bingo clubs, for undisclosed terms. 05-Jul-2004 Heywood Williams is to sell Bristolpipe, the US manufacturer of PVC pipes, to Westlake Chemical for £18m. 05-Jul-2004 ARC International has sold its Peripheral Connectivity division to TransDimension of the US for £3.6m. 05-Jul-2004 Nightfreight, the overnight freight operator, has been sold by Barclays Private Equity to a management team for £89m. 05-Jul-2004 Skipton Building Society is to acquire MLP Insurance Services, the Shipley-based private health insurance broker, for £2.8m. 02-Jul-2004 Chesnara has sold Key Retirement Solutions, its equity release and retirement planning IFA company with 70 staff, to management for £2.8m. 02-Jul-2004 PZ Cussons has acquired the Charles Worthington hair care business for an initial £25m. 02-Jul-2004 European Motor Holdings has sold Taunton Trucks, its DAF and LDV trucks business, to Wessex GS for £0.6m. 02-Jul-2004 Centrica has agreed to sell the AA motoring organisation to a company formed by CVC Capital Partners and Permira Advisers for £1.7bn. 02-Jul-2004 IP2IPO has acquired Top Technology Ventures, the investment manager of early stage technology venture capital funds, for up to £2.4m. 02-Jul-2004 Broker Network has acquired AJ Barter Insurance Brokers of Somerset for up to £0.5m. 02-Jul-2004 Business Serve has acquired KB Media, the broadband internet provider, for £0.4m. 02-Jul-2004 International Energy Group has acquired a portfolio of gas transportation assets from Mowlem Energy for £1.9m. 02-Jul-2004 Macrae Food Group, the seafood company with 1,300 staff in Fraserburgh, Inverness, Edinburgh, Hull and Pewsey, has been acquired by Young's of Grimsby. 02-Jul-2004 Newmark Security is to acquire Custom Micro Products, the Poole-based supplier of microprocessor-based products, for up to £2.8m. 01-Jul-2004 RPS has acquired Flow Control Water Conservation, the Liverpool-based water resource consultancy with 300 staff, and the business will relocate to RPS Water Services in Warrington. 01-Jul-2004 Atlantic Technology, the Crumlin-based semiconductor assembly and testing facility with 250 staff, has been acquired by Unisem Berhad of Malaysia in a £16m deal. 01-Jul-2004 Heating Components & Equipment, the supplier of central heating components with 24 staff at branches in Gateshead and Glasgow, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Quantum Corporate Finance. 01-Jul-2004 Nestle Rowntree is to sell its cocoa processing operations in York to Cargill, which will involve the transfer of 27 jobs. 01-Jul-2004 Havelock Europa has acquired TeacherBoards, the Skipton-based manufacturer of display boards, for up to £6.1m. 01-Jul-2004 Lastminute.com has acquired Lastminute.de, the German online travel company, for £31m. 01-Jul-2004 Singer & Friedlander is to acquire Wintrust, the London-based merchant bank, for £53m. 01-Jul-2004 IMI is to acquire Fluid Automation Systems, the Swiss manufacturer of valves, for £20m. 01-Jul-2004 Domino Printing Sciences is to acquire Purex International, the Rotherham-based supplier of fume extraction equipment and filters, for an initial £1.5m. 30-Jun-2004 VT Group is to sell some of the operations of its VT Engine Controls subsidiary to Sareline for up to £2.5m. 30-Jun-2004 Media Square has acquired IAS Group, the Manchester-based branding and marketing agency with 42 staff. 30-Jun-2004 Home Entertainment Corporation has acquired In-Store Movies, the supplier of video and DVD rental products to convenience stores. 30-Jun-2004 Inchcape has acquired Southwell Motor, the operator of five Mercedes and Smart car dealerships in the East Midlands, for £28m. 29-Jun-2004 National Grid Transco is to acquire Crown Castle UK, the owner of 3,500 mobile phone masts and 750 broadcasting towers, for £1.1bn. 29-Jun-2004 Cyberes, the Harrogate-based travel company, has been bought out of administration by the Travel Company, securing the future of 120 staff. 29-Jun-2004 Bentley Jennison is to merge with WBS, the accountancy firm with offices in Leeds and Harrogate, creating a combined group with 50 partners and more than 750 staff. 29-Jun-2004 ITE Group has acquired RAS Publishing, the publisher of fashion magazines, for £2m. 28-Jun-2004 Gourmet Holdings is to acquire three Bel and the Dragon country pubs and restaurants in Cookham, Windsor and Godalming for £6.3m. 28-Jun-2004 Crest Nicholson Marinas, the operator of marinas in Bristol, Conwy, Penarth, Tyneside and Bangor, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 28-Jun-2004 Pets at Home, the chain of 155 pet stores, is to be acquired by private equity group Bridgepoint for about £230m. 28-Jun-2004 OyezStraker, the office supplies company, has been sold by Bridgepoint Capital to Hermes Private Equity for £80m. 28-Jun-2004 Karen Millen, the fashion retailer with about 125 stores and concessions, has been acquired by Baugur of Iceland for £120m. 28-Jun-2004 Royal & Sun Alliance has sold its Scandinavian life and pensions business to SEB Trygg of Sweden for £173m. 28-Jun-2004 OpenPSL, the distributor of computer security products with 160 staff at offices in Manchester, Leeds, Bracknell, Nottingham and Dublin, has been acquired by Bell Microproducts of the US for £20m. 25-Jun-2004 Medical Solutions is to sell Kinetic Imaging to Andor Technology for £0.6m, in order to focus on its core pathology services business. 25-Jun-2004 Nord Anglia Education has sold ten schools to Gems Education for £12m, in order to focus on the nursery sector. 25-Jun-2004 Serif, the Nottingham-based supplier of desktop publishing software with 270 staff, has undergone a management buy-out with the support of a £3m funding package from Bank of Scotland Corporate. 25-Jun-2004 Begbies Traynor has agreed to sell JCM Print Services of Liverpool out of administration to G&H Web Offset, which has operations in Manchester, Leeds, London and Edinburgh, for undisclosed terms. 24-Jun-2004 Willis is to acquire a majority stake in Coyle Hamilton, the Irish insurance broker with 500 staff, for undisclosed terms. 24-Jun-2004 Weeks Laboratories has acquired Church Laboratory Services, the Castleford-based materials testing company with 37 staff. 24-Jun-2004 Boulton Construction Products of the West Midlands has been bought out of administration by a management buy-out. 24-Jun-2004 On Demand Distribution, the provider of online music download services, has been acquired by Loudeye Corporation of the US for £31m. 23-Jun-2004 YooMedia, the interactive TV company, has acquired the national dating agency Dateline for £0.8m. 23-Jun-2004 Londis, the convenience store chain, is to accept a £60m takeover offer from Musgrave of Ireland. 23-Jun-2004 Capita Symonds has acquired Percy Thomas Architects, creating one of the country's five leading architectural groups. 23-Jun-2004 Pochin Plant has acquired Raynesway Concrete Plumbing, which has depots in Bellshill, Manchester, Leeds and Newcastle, for £2.4m. 23-Jun-2004 GKN is to sell its German tube connecting systems business to Eaton Corporation of the US for £26m. 23-Jun-2004 Hollinger International has agreed to sell the Telegraph newspapers group to Press Holdings for £665m. 23-Jun-2004 Aegis Group has acquired Proactive Insight, the South African market research company with 300 staff, for an initial £3.4m. 23-Jun-2004 Auto Indemnity Group has acquired the Colegate Group of Norfolk for £1.1m, including Colegate Vehicle Hire, Colegate Accident Assistance and Motor Hire of Diss. 23-Jun-2004 Taylor Hobson, the Leicester-based manufacturer of ultra-precision measurement instrumentation, has been acquired by Ametek of the US for £50m. 23-Jun-2004 SP Bell, the stockbroker with nine regional offices, has announced a £2m reverse takeover deal with Merchant House Group. 23-Jun-2004 InTechnology has acquired NetConnect Training, the provider of network security training services, from NetStore for up to £1m. 22-Jun-2004 Ultra Electronics has acquired DNE Systems, the US military communications company, for £22m. 22-Jun-2004 Ben Sherman, the fashion and shirts company, has been acquired by Oxford Industries of the US for £80m. 22-Jun-2004 Desira Group has acquired Abacus, in order to offer self-drive hire services at its Norfolk car dealerships. 22-Jun-2004 North West Trucks has been acquired by Heatons Transport of St Helens for undisclosed terms, creating a combined group with 200 staff at depots in Huyton, St Helens, Wigan and Northwich. 21-Jun-2004 Maximuscle, the supplier of sports supplements and drinks, has been acquired by Piper Private Equity for £9.7m. 21-Jun-2004 Travelodge has bought the Thistle London Islington and Thistle London Ryan hotels for £55m. 21-Jun-2004 Abbey National is to sell its asset finance and leasing businesses to ING Lease UK, which will involve the transfer of about 243 staff. 18-Jun-2004 Comdirect, the online stockbroker, has been sold by its German parent to Lloyds TSB Development Capital for £16m. 17-Jun-2004 Eleco has acquired Prompt Profiles, the Norwich-based gutter and fascia supplier. 17-Jun-2004 James Halstead has sold Belstaff International, the operator of several licensing arrangements for wax cotton jackets and leisure clothing, to an Italian licensee for £10m. 16-Jun-2004 White Young Green has acquired DWP Consulting, the Leicester-based building services consultancy, for £0.8m. 16-Jun-2004 Celtech, the operator of paper mills in Lancaster and Heysham, has been acquired by Goulds Design & Manufacturing of Heywood, creating a new group called Northern Tissue. 16-Jun-2004 Tibbett & Britten, the logistics group, has received a £328m takeover approach from Exel, which could lead to annual cost savings of £20m and the loss of 200 jobs. 16-Jun-2004 Morgan Crucible is to sell the auto and consumer business of its electrical carbon division to Energy Conversion Systems of the US for £33m. 16-Jun-2004 Ross Group is to sell its Tadmod battery charger and electrical adaptor business to Queenspark, and the net asset value of the transaction is about £0.2m. 15-Jun-2004 SP Holdings has acquired TSE Consulting, the Swiss sports marketing company with offices in London and Lausanne. 15-Jun-2004 Monstermob has acquired Phunky Phones, the London-based provider of mobile phone entertainment services, for an initial £0.7m. 15-Jun-2004 Sentinel Doors, the Llantrisant-based door manufacturer, has been acquired by Therma-Tru Doors of the US for undisclosed terms. 15-Jun-2004 Biotrace International has acquired Tecra Holdings, the Australian supplier of test kits for food-related pathogens, for £5.2m. 15-Jun-2004 Wolverhampton & Dudley has acquired Wizard Inns, the chain of 63 pubs, from investment management group Terra Firma for £90m. 15-Jun-2004 Synergy Healthcare has acquired LIPS Textielservice, the Dutch healthcare textile management company, for £33m, funded by a £37m share placing. 15-Jun-2004 Abacus Group has acquired Telecom Design Communications, the supplier of electronic components, for £2m. 14-Jun-2004 ID Data is to acquire CardBASE Technologies, the developer of smart card management solutions, for £2.3m. 14-Jun-2004 Hargreaves has acquired R Hanson & Son, the Barnsley-based bulk haulage company, for £0.3m. 14-Jun-2004 Schuh, the Livingston-based footwear retailer with 37 stores, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 14-Jun-2004 Ethel Austin has been acquired by ABN Amro for £122m, and plans to expand its chain of 271 discount clothing stores to 470 over the next five years. 14-Jun-2004 Go-Ahead has acquired Chauffeured Parking Services, the valet parking operator at a number of airports, for up to £1.2m. 14-Jun-2004 Antler, the operator of 24 luggage stores and more than 70 concessions, has undergone a £44m management buy-out backed by Barclays Private Equity. 14-Jun-2004 AMS, the Redditch-based retail display equipment supplier with 240 staff, has undergone a £5m management buy-out. 14-Jun-2004 Dove Valley, the Derbyshire-based poultry supplier with about 700 staff, has been acquired by OSI of the US for undisclosed terms. 14-Jun-2004 International Greetings has acquired Krakajack, the Irish supplier of party crackers, for £0.4m. 11-Jun-2004 Ascent Technology, the Hinckley-based software developer with sales of £23m, has been acquired by CIBER of the US. 11-Jun-2004 May Gurney has acquired TJ Brent, the Bodmin-based infrastructure services company with 18 regional offices, in a multi-million pound deal. 11-Jun-2004 Erinaceous has acquired Jordans, the property management network with 60 staff at offices in Manchester, Altrincham, Wilmslow, Macclesfield, Warrington, Sandbach and Chester, for £2.8m. 10-Jun-2004 Great Lakes Chemical Corp has sold its chemicals factory in Holywell to Ian Shott Development for undisclosed terms, and the 57 staff will be retained to offer a range of research and development services. 10-Jun-2004 Beeston Heating, the Belper-based supplier of heating systems with 25 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 10-Jun-2004 Morgan Est has acquired AWG Rail Services, the Sheffield-based trackwork company, saving about half of the 60 jobs. 10-Jun-2004 Yates Group, the bar operator, has received a £80m takeover approach from a management buy-out backed by US private equity firm GI Partners. 10-Jun-2004 Find A Property, the Brighton-based online property magazine with 18 staff, has undergone a £2.8m management buy-out backed by Barclays Ventures. 10-Jun-2004 Princes Foods has acquired Well Well Well, the natural mineral water bottler with sites in Cumbria and Shropshire, in a multi-million pound deal. 09-Jun-2004 Ceramic Prints, the Brighouse-based manufacturer of tiles, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Lloyds TSB Commercial Finance. 09-Jun-2004 Centrica is to acquire the Killingholme gas power station near Grimsby for £142m, in order to secure its winter electricity supplies. 09-Jun-2004 Gowrings has sold its motor vehicle accident repair centres in Wokingham, Swindon and Oxford to Nationwide Accident Repair Services for £0.5m. 08-Jun-2004 First Aid UK, the Cheshire-based supplier of first aid kits, is to be acquired by Healthcare Enterprise Group for £2m. 08-Jun-2004 Corpora is to acquire Infonic, the internet research software and services company, for £1.2m, and will also acquire software development company Algorithmix. 08-Jun-2004 Blackpool Council is to sell Blackpool Airport to City Hopper for £13m, and City Hopper hopes to quadruple passenger numbers by 2008. 08-Jun-2004 Park Group is to sell Link Brand, its Chesterfield-based design and packing business with 48 staff, to a management buy-in team. 07-Jun-2004 Parker Hannifin has acquired Mead Fluid Dynamics' UK operations, securing the future of 180 jobs in Cannock. 07-Jun-2004 Berkeley Burke has acquired Sheldon Monk, the London-based insurance broker with ten staff. 07-Jun-2004 Capital Incentives, the Chester-based supplier of staff reward schemes and gift vouchers with 100 staff, is to be acquired by Accor of France for £17m. 07-Jun-2004 BAe Systems is to acquire Alvis, the tank manufacturer, for £335m, having beaten a rival bid from General Dynamics. 07-Jun-2004 Sovereign Capital has completed the £22m institutional buy-out of Herts Care Group, the provider of crisis care homes for children and young people. 04-Jun-2004 Sunwin Motor Group is to acquire seven car dealerships from the Ilkeston Co-op Group for undisclosed terms. 04-Jun-2004 Stewarts, the Edinburgh-based print firm with 80 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 04-Jun-2004 Bowater Building Products, the supplier of doors and windows, has undergone a £52m management buy-out backed by 3i. 04-Jun-2004 Scottish Power has bought the 800MW Damhead Creek power station in Kent from the creditors of Entergy for £318m. 03-Jun-2004 Donegal Creameries is to merge its Carbury Mushrooms business with Monaghan Middlebrook, creating Europe's largest mushroom supplier. 03-Jun-2004 Reed Elsevier is to acquire Saxon Publishers, the US publisher of instructional materials, in order to expand its Harcourt Education division. 03-Jun-2004 Avingtrans has acquired Crown, the Bristol-based manufacturer of stands for roadside cameras, for £1.6m. 03-Jun-2004 Peacocks has acquired The Fragrance Shop, the Liverpool-based operator of 29 perfume shops, for up to £15m. 03-Jun-2004 Homeserve has acquired the house builder policy business of Principal Choice Limited and Principal Marketing & Insurance Services for up to £2m. 03-Jun-2004 Pilkington's Tiles has sold all its operating businesses, including the Pilkington's and Quiligotti brands and the 30-acre Corfe Mullen quarry, to a new company called Surface Coatings for £3.1m. 03-Jun-2004 Halma is to acquire Ocean Optics, the US supplier of optical sensing systems, for an initial £14m. 02-Jun-2004 Tomkins has sold Mayfran International, the US-based manufacturer of material handling equipment, to a US private equity fund. 02-Jun-2004 White Young Green has acquired Hawthorne Kamm, the Hampshire-based town planning consultancy, for £1.5m. 02-Jun-2004 United Business Media is to acquire MediMedia's drug information business in continental Europe and Asia for £190m, including trade press, patient education and pharma marketing operations. 02-Jun-2004 Sirvis IT has acquired the IT support services division of OSE for £1.7m, in order to expand its Linetex Computers subsidiary. 02-Jun-2004 DS Smith is to acquire BPB Recycling, the recovered paper collection business with five depots and 140 staff, from BPB. 02-Jun-2004 Bioquell has acquired EMC Projects, the provider of electromagnetic compatibility testing services, for an initial £0.2m, in order to expand its Cape Engineering subsidiary. 02-Jun-2004 Xtreme Information Services, the advertisement monitoring company, has sold its news division to Durrants for £17m. 01-Jun-2004 Johnston Carmichael has acquired Turnbull Kemp, the Perth-based accountancy firm with 20 staff. 01-Jun-2004 Nord Anglia Education is to acquire 28 nurseries from Jigsaw Day Nurseries for £13m, taking its chain to 101 sites. 01-Jun-2004 Target Group has acquired Bluechip Software, the Lancashire-based developer of mortgage processing software with eight staff. 01-Jun-2004 Red Funnel, the Isle of Wight ferry operator with 400 staff, has undergone a £60m management buy-out backed by Bank of Scotland. 31-May-2004 Martin International, the lingerie manufacturer, is to be acquired by Crystal International of Hong Kong for £17m. 31-May-2004 Cable & Wireless is to acquire Bulldog Communications, the provider of broadband services, for £19m. 31-May-2004 Dixons Group is to acquire WHSU, formerly known as Micro Warehouse, in order to expand the business-to-business operation of its PC World subsidiary. 28-May-2004 Systems Union Group is to acquire Lasata, the Australian supplier of business intelligence software, for about £10m. 28-May-2004 Associated British Foods is to acquire The Billington Food Group, the Ipswich-based importer of unrefined raw cane sugars with net assets of £7.7m. 28-May-2004 Metflex, the Blackburn-based manufacturer of precision rubber components with 89 staff, has undergone a management buy-in. 28-May-2004 Tyne & Wear Development Company is to assist NewLogic in setting up a £3m business outsourcing operation at the Boldon Business Park on Tyneside over the next two years, with the creation of at least 150 jobs. 28-May-2004 Brahm has acquired Teamwork Marketing, the York-based foodservice marketing company, for undisclosed terms, and about 30 staff are expected to relocate to Headingley. 28-May-2004 Crusader Holidays, the Clacton-based holiday firm with about 50 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 27-May-2004 Collins Stewart is to acquire Prebon Group for undisclosed terms, creating a combined broking business with 3,000 staff in 26 cities worldwide. 27-May-2004 Group 4 Falck has agreed to sell Global Solutions, its UK-based prison management business, to Electra Partners Europe and Englefield Capital for £207m. 27-May-2004 White Young Green has acquired IMC Consulting and IMC Europe of Nottinghamshire for £10m, in order to expand its project management operations. 27-May-2004 Business Serve has acquired Designer Servers, the Manchester-based provider of internet hosting services, for £1.9m. 27-May-2004 GKN is to sell its 50% stake in the AgustaWestland helicopter business to Finmeccanica of Italy for £1.06bn, and the proceeds will be used to expand its automotive and aerospace component operations. 27-May-2004 Sondex is to acquire Geolink International, the Aberdeen-based manufacturer of oil well equipment, for £31m. 27-May-2004 Cunningham John is to merge with Few & Kester of Cambridge, creating a combined East Anglian law firm with 23 partners called Kester Cunningham John. 26-May-2004 Shanks is to sell its 24 landfill sites and related power operations to Terra Firma for £227m, and the business will be merged with Waste Recycling Group. 26-May-2004 Bookham Technology has acquired Onetta, the US optical amplifier supplier, for about £13m. 25-May-2004 Britton Group, the plastic packaging supplier with 850 staff at sites in Winsford, Hartlepool and Louth, has undergone a £46m management buy-out. 25-May-2004 NetBenefit has acquired Easily, the provider of domain name and hosting services, for £2.5m. 25-May-2004 Alpha Financial Management has acquired Eccleston Park Financial Services of Prescot for undisclosed terms. 25-May-2004 McInerney Holdings has acquired Alexander Developments, the Sedgefield-based housebuilder, for £8.8m. 24-May-2004 Technology Services Group has acquired ISI Systems, the Glasgow-based IT services company with 30 staff, for undisclosed terms. 24-May-2004 Seafield Logistics is to acquire the Ken Thomas haulage company at Guyhirn, near Wisbech, which will lead to the loss of ten management jobs and the closure of a depot in Peterborough. 24-May-2004 Viking Engineering, the Nottingham-based architectural metalwork company, has undergone a £2m management buy-out backed by Bank of Scotland Corporate Banking. 24-May-2004 SSL International is to sell its antiseptics and surgical gloves business to a management team backed by Apax for £173m. 24-May-2004 Alchemy has acquired Swift Advances, the mortgage and consumer credit lender, for about £100m. 24-May-2004 Peter Hunt's Bakery Foods has acquired the frozen savoury foods business of Preston-based Ashworth's Foods, and production will transfer to its site in Bolton. 24-May-2004 Canary Wharf, the London-based property developer, is to be acquired by a consortium led by Morgan Stanley for £1.7bn. 24-May-2004 Profile Therapeutics, the West Sussex-based biotechnology company, is to be acquired by Respironics of the US for £25m. 24-May-2004 Fresh Media Group has acquired Vision, the Milton Keynes and London-based catalogue design company. 21-May-2004 Primagraphics, the Royston-based supplier of radar displays with 50 staff, has been acquired by Curtiss-Wright of the US for £12m. 21-May-2004 Balfour Beatty is to sell Andover Controls, the US-based supplier of building management controls with subsidiaries in the UK, Germany, Poland and France, to Schneider Electric for £226m. 20-May-2004 Johnson Service is to acquire Sketchley Services, which includes 103 dry cleaning shops, from the Timpson Group for a nominal sum. 20-May-2004 KEB Business Solutions, the Brighton-based cellular telephone company, has been acquired by Blue Telecommunications of Nottingham for undisclosed terms. 20-May-2004 Bradford & Bingley is looking to sell its Charcol mortgage broking operation, as well as its 300-strong chain of estate agents, its SecureMove surveying business and two independent financial advisers. 20-May-2004 Invensys is to sell its Hansen Transmissions gearbox manufacturing subsidiary to Allianz Capital Partners of Germany for £75m. 20-May-2004 Care UK has acquired Althea Park, the Stroud-based residential care provider, from Marlowe Child & Family Services for £5.1m. 19-May-2004 Brookhouse Holdings, the composites and metals engineering company with 470 staff at sites in Darwen, Tameside and Huntingdon, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Aberdeen Murray Johnstone Private Equity. 19-May-2004 Celltech, the biotechnology company, is to be acquired by UCB of Belgium for £1.53bn. 19-May-2004 Fitzpatrick, the Hertfordshire-based construction company with about 750 staff, is to be acquired by VolkerWessels of the Netherlands. 18-May-2004 Autobar, the vending machine supplier, is to be acquired by private equity firm Charterhouse for £540m. 18-May-2004 Amlin has acquired SM Marine Holdings, the yacht insurance broker that operates under the name of St Margarets Insurances and has net assets of £1.4m. 17-May-2004 Caffyns has acquired the Volkswagen car dealership for the Brighton area from Appleyard Motor Company for £0.5m. 17-May-2004 Chiron has sold its needle-free injection technology to PowderMed, a new company set up by former managers of Powderject. 17-May-2004 Halma has acquired Diba Industries, the US supplier of fluid transfer equipment, for £7.9m. 17-May-2004 Scipher has sold its QED Intellectual Property subsidiary to Innovation Development for £0.1m. 14-May-2004 Three Lions Leisure, the operator of an indoor five-a-side football centre in Huddersfield, has been acquired by Taskcatch for £0.1m. 14-May-2004 Carillion is to sell its Crown House mechanical and electrical engineering business to Laing O'Rourke for £17m, in order to focus on its Business Services and Private Finance activities. 13-May-2004 Magic4, the Warrington-based developer of mobile phone software with 130 staff, has been acquired by Openware Systems of the US for £47m. 13-May-2004 Andaray Engineering has sold its Gateshead-based precision machining business to management for £0.9m, securing the future of 90 jobs. 13-May-2004 AstraZeneca and Royal Cosun are to sell their Advanta seeds business to Syngenta of Switzerland for £280m. 13-May-2004 Hunting is to sell some of its oil pipe manufacturing operations to Sooner Pipe of the US for £25m. 13-May-2004 Reeves Oilfield Services of Loughborough has been acquired by Precision Drilling Corporation of Canada for £90m. 12-May-2004 Wealth Management Software has acquired Fairs, the supplier of software to independent financial advisers, for £2m. 12-May-2004 GWR and Caledonia Investments are to sell Radio Investments, the owner of 22 local radio stations, to The Local Radio Company for about £40m. 11-May-2004 Danish Crown has acquired Flagship Foods, the pork producer that includes Roach Foods and Dalehead Foods, in order to expand its Tulip subsidiary. 11-May-2004 Kerry Group has acquired four flavour companies for a total £113m, including Manheimer and Flavurence of the US, Laboratorios Krauss of Mexico and Fructamine of Italy. 11-May-2004 Galleon Holdings has acquired Croco Worldwide Sourcing, the promotions company, in an all-share deal. 11-May-2004 Intertek has acquired Entela, the US automotive components testing company, for £15m. 11-May-2004 Bunzl has acquired Groupe Pierre Le Goff, the French distributor of cleaning and safety products, for £157m. 11-May-2004 Uniq is to acquire a chilled desserts manufacturing business in Minsterley, Shropshire, from Northern Foods for £16m, which will involve the transfer of 520 staff. 11-May-2004 Aggregate Industries is to acquire Frehner, the US-based construction company that supplies aggregates and asphalt from sites in Nevada and Utah, for £53m. 11-May-2004 Longhirst Group has acquired People Resource Management, the Portsmouth-based training provider with 60 staff, for £1.2m. 11-May-2004 Co-operative Group is to acquire Conveco, the Bristol-based chain of 64 convenience stores with more than 900 staff, for an estimated £25m. 11-May-2004 Emerald Group Publishing, the Bradford-based academic publishing company with 170 staff, has undergone a £50m management buy-out. 11-May-2004 Airdrome of the US has acquired AF Aerospace, the Rugby-based manufacturer of aircraft hydraulic components with 100 staff. 10-May-2004 Tencel, the textile fibres company with 150 staff at a factory in Grimsby, has been acquired by Lenzing of Austria. 10-May-2004 I-documentsystems is to acquire TFPL, the London-based knowledge management consultancy, for up to £4m. 10-May-2004 Securitas of Sweden is to acquire Bell Group, the Ilford-based supplier of banking security systems with 800 staff, for £97m. 10-May-2004 Virtue Broadcasting has acquired Foroso Communications, the German web conferencing company, for up to £1.3m. 07-May-2004 Huveaux is to acquire Parliamentary Communications, the publisher of political journals, for £16m. 07-May-2004 Huntsworth is to acquire Strategy Communications, the Bristol-based public relations company, for an initial £0.5m. 07-May-2004 First Technology is to acquire BW Technologies, the Canadian supplier of portable gas detection instruments, for £106m, and has also announced the acquisition of ATMI's life safety systems division for £6m. 07-May-2004 Stanelco is to acquire Aquasol, the developer of water-soluble packaging products, for up to £3.1m. 07-May-2004 Servicetoken, the Northumberland-based supplier of matchpot and aerosol paints, has undergone a management buy-out, and now plans to double its 18-strong workforce. 07-May-2004 Emap has acquired ABI Building Data from ICW Publications for £14m. 06-May-2004 Northern Foods' Cavaghan & Gray subsidiary has sold Emile Tissot, the Telford-based frozen ready meals supplier with about 100 staff, to Dawn Fresh Foods for £3.5m. 06-May-2004 Dickinsons has acquired Decorflair, the chain of eight interior decorating stores in the north-east, for undisclosed terms. 06-May-2004 MacQueen Air Conditioning, which has 50 staff at sites in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds and Maidstone, has been acquired by Daikin of Japan for about £3.5m. 06-May-2004 Homestyle is to sell its Rosebys chain of textiles stores to a management buy-out backed by Lloyds TSB for £50m. 06-May-2004 Centrica has acquired Quintana Minerals Canada Investments, the Canadian natural gas producer, for £21m, in order to expand its Direct Energy division. 05-May-2004 Headlam has acquired National Carpets, the Rochdale-based carpet supplier, for an initial £3.4m. 05-May-2004 Tullow Oil has raised £123m in a share issue to help fund the £320m acquisition of Energy Africa, which has oil interests in nine African countries. 05-May-2004 Royal Bank of Scotland is to acquire Chapter One, the US bank, for £5.8bn, in order to expand its US-based Citizens subsidiary. 05-May-2004 Hargreaves, the bulk haulier, has undergone a £19m management buy-out backed by Baring English Growth Fund. 04-May-2004 Erinaceous is to acquire ISG Occupancy, the property services company with offices in London, Manchester, Bradford and Bristol, from Interior Services Group for £10m. 04-May-2004 Northgate has acquired full ownership of Fualsa, the Spanish vehicle rental company, in a £15m deal, and plans to double Fualsa's network to 20 sites by 2006. 04-May-2004 Vantis is to acquire the non-audit business of McBrides of Sidcup for up to £1.3m, in order to expand its corporate finance and taxation services. 03-May-2004 Chorion has acquired the Mr Men range of children's characters for £28m, and has also announced plans to raise £16m in a share placing. 03-May-2004 Nord Anglia is to acquire Leapfrog Day Nurseries for £60m, which will expand its chain of nursery centres from 34 to 73. 03-May-2004 Alliance & Leicester has sold its payment processing operation to Nova Information Systems of the US for £83m. 03-May-2004 RPS Group is to acquire MRP, the Wolverhampton-based development consultancy, for up to £25m, as well as BBG, the Australian supplier of environmental planning services, for up to £2.9m. 30-Apr-2004 Galen has sold its UK-based pharmaceutical sales and marketing operation to its founder for £40m, and has also announced the sale of its sterile fluids solutions business to Gambro BCT of the US for £2.5m. 30-Apr-2004 Kingston Communications has sold its Inmedia satellite and broadcasting unit to The Carlyle Group for £34m, and the proceeds will be used to reduce debt. 30-Apr-2004 Apollo Lifts, the Romford-based lift contractor, has undergone a management buy-out and is now planning to establish an operations centre in the North of England and expand head office facilities. 30-Apr-2004 Ennstone is to acquire GRS (South Witham), the operator of a limestone quarry in Lincolnshire, for £1.6m. 29-Apr-2004 Kidde is to acquire SPI Fire Engineering, the Farnborough-based supplier of fire protection systems with 26 staff. 29-Apr-2004 Paper 4 Print has acquired York & Ford, the Failsworth-based paper merchant with 16 staff, for undisclosed terms. 29-Apr-2004 RMC Concrete Products has acquired Conway Concrete Products of Newport for £1.5m. 29-Apr-2004 Clancy is to acquire TMP Parkover, the modular car parking installer, for undisclosed terms. 29-Apr-2004 Safestore is to acquire Mentmore for £209m, creating the country's largest self-storage company with 68 sites. 29-Apr-2004 Cambridge Water has been sold by Union Fenosa to Cheung Kong Infrastructure of Hong Kong for £51m. 29-Apr-2004 J&J Haslett has sold Holmes Catering, the supplier of meals to schools and hospitals in Northern Ireland with 70 staff, to John Henderson Group for undisclosed terms. 28-Apr-2004 Prime Business Solutions, the Newbury-based IP telephony company with 130 staff, has been acquired by 2e2 Group for £22m. 28-Apr-2004 Invensys is to sell its Powerware power supply systems business to Eaton Corporation of the US for £313m. 28-Apr-2004 Ciro Citterio, the operator of 52 menswear stores, has been bought out of administration by Anar of Huddersfield. 28-Apr-2004 Compel Group has acquired Sysao, the London-based IT consultancy with 50 staff, for £2.2m. 27-Apr-2004 CTD, the reports and accounts printer, has been sold by Capita for undisclosed terms and is now looking to move from its Twickenham plant. 27-Apr-2004 Matrix Communications is to acquire Decorum Networks, the provider of IP telephony and messaging services, for up to £2.3m. 27-Apr-2004 London Bridge Software, the developer of debt collection and credit management applications, is to be acquired by Fair Isaac of the US for £166m. 27-Apr-2004 Laird is to acquire Thermagon, the US-based thermal management products company, for up to £25m. 27-Apr-2004 GE Sontay, the Kent-based manufacturer of machines that measure temperature and humidity with 35 staff, has been acquired by Owner Venture Managers for more than £1m. 26-Apr-2004 Gem International, the Leicester-based manufacturer of tissues and cling film, has undergone a management buy-out, securing the future of 65 jobs. 26-Apr-2004 WH Smith has sold its ASPAC Retail operations in Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong to Pacific Equity Partners. 26-Apr-2004 Incisive Media has acquired Initiative Europe Holdings, the business publisher, for £16m. 26-Apr-2004 Dawnfresh Seafoods has acquired Silver Trout, the Hampshire-based trout producer, for undisclosed terms. 26-Apr-2004 Supporta is to acquire SDMS & Co, the provider of payroll services, for up to £0.35m. 23-Apr-2004 Elementis is to acquire Sasol Servo, the Dutch surfactants manufacturer with sites in the US, Mexico and Italy, for £32m. 23-Apr-2004 Centrica is to acquire Bastrop Energy Partners, the owner of the Bastrop Energy Center power station in Texas, from US-based FPL Energy for £80m. 23-Apr-2004 Ascent Group has acquired B&G Software Consultancy, the Monmouth-based IT outsourcing and software development company, for £2.2m, and up to ten new jobs will be created. 22-Apr-2004 S&P Coil Products of Leicester has undergone a management buy-out from parent company Halma, in a £2.9m deal backed by Northern Venture Managers. 22-Apr-2004 GW Padley is in talks to sell most of its Lincolnshire-based poultry business to OSI Group of the US. 22-Apr-2004 Aveva is to acquire Tribon Solutions, the Swedish supplier of software to ship designers, for £19m. 22-Apr-2004 Ultrafine, the Manchester-based provider of contract chemistry services for drug development with 80 staff, has been acquired by Sigma-Aldrich of the US for undisclosed terms. 21-Apr-2004 Bland Bankart, the East Midlands-based insurance broker with 260 staff, has been acquired by Oval in a deal estimated at £20m. 21-Apr-2004 Shire Pharmaceuticals is to sell its vaccines division to ID Biomedical of Canada for £66m, and Shire will loan about £60m to ID to fund the development of new products. 21-Apr-2004 Brandon Hire has acquired four tool hire depots operated by Anvil Plant Hire in Kent, with the transfer of 37 staff. 21-Apr-2004 Tribal Group has acquired Aldcliffe Computer Systems, the developer of administrative software for work-based learning providers, for up to £4.5m. 20-Apr-2004 Five Star Fish, the Grimsby-based fish processing company with 250 staff, is to be acquired by the Real Good Food Company for an initial £17m. 20-Apr-2004 Clubhaus, the golf and country club operator, has agreed terms for a £56m management buy-out backed by Legal & General Ventures. 20-Apr-2004 SurfControl is to acquire Messagesoft, the US-based developer of email filtering software, for £8.2m. 20-Apr-2004 Benfield has sold Wildnet Group, a subsidiary that provides technology solutions to the insurance and reinsurance industry, to a consortium of private investors for a nominal sum. 19-Apr-2004 Parkwood is to acquire CCL Leisure, the manager of 33 leisure facilities for local councils, from Clear Channel Entertainment, for up to £0.5m. 19-Apr-2004 James Briggs, the Oldham-based manufacturer of chemical and aerosol products, has been acquired by ITW of the US for £20m. 19-Apr-2004 Plasmon is to acquire Raidtec, the Irish data storage company, for £3.4m. 19-Apr-2004 Daily Mail & General Trust has acquired Trepp, the US-based provider of property data, for £23m, in order to expand its DMG Information division. 19-Apr-2004 Blooms of Bressingham is to sell its new plant marketing operations for up to £0.5m, and the proceeds will be invested in its garden centres. 19-Apr-2004 Aggregate Industries has acquired Woodhall Spa Sand & Gravel, the Lincolnshire-based supplier of aggregates, for £10m. 16-Apr-2004 Johnson Service has acquired Enfield-based HSS Event Hire from HSS Group for £1.5m, in order to expand its Johnson Hospitality Services division. 16-Apr-2004 Alkane Energy has acquired an 83% stake in Farmatic Biotech Energy UK, the developer of biogas plants in Devon, Northern Ireland and North Wales, for about £0.2m. 16-Apr-2004 William Ransom & Son is to acquire Health Perception UK, the Berkshire-based supplier of vitamins and health food supplements, for £7.8m. 16-Apr-2004 Extrudawood International, the Isle of Wight-based licensor of wood replacement technology, has been acquired by CPI Plastics Group for £5m. 16-Apr-2004 Smiths Group is to acquire SensIR Technologies, the US manufacturer of infrared-based analysers with 110 staff, for £41m. 15-Apr-2004 Ardeth Engineering, the supplier of pressure vessels and process plant with 120 staff, has undergone a management buy-out, and has also announced the acquisition of Leeds-based boiler fitter Richardson Mechanical Services. 15-Apr-2004 Bibby Distribution has acquired Winlen Bay, the Cannock-based freight forwarding company with 30 staff. 15-Apr-2004 Trident Communications has acquired Carter Rae, the Edinburgh-based supplier of in-house publications, for undisclosed terms. 15-Apr-2004 Clee Hill Plant has expanded its network of plant hire depots to seven with the acquisition of Stoke-based Triangle Plant for undisclosed terms. 15-Apr-2004 Trax Portable Access has acquired Rapid Response Barriers, the London-based supplier of roadway barriers, for undisclosed terms. 15-Apr-2004 Meade Corporation has acquired CJ Pearce, the Telford-based contractor with annual turnover of £17m, for undisclosed terms. 15-Apr-2004 Thomas Vale has acquired Collier & Catley, the Reading-based contractor with anticipated annual turnover of £15m. 15-Apr-2004 Adprotech, the Cambridge-based drug discovery company with 20 staff, has been sold by Prelude Trust to Inflazyme Pharmaceuticals of Canada for £8.2m. 14-Apr-2004 GlaxoSmithKline has acquired two heart disease drugs from Sanofi-Synthelabo for £297m, including a manufacturing facility in France that employs 650 staff. 14-Apr-2004 Densitron Technologies is to sell Densitron Control Systems to Geeplus Components for £0.6m, in order to focus on the production of displays and related products. 14-Apr-2004 Cambrian Engineering, the manufacturer of steel towers for wind farms with sites in Bangor and Stornoway, has been bought out of administration by a new company called Cambrian Caledonian. 14-Apr-2004 Hotbed, the private equity house, has supported the £10m management buy-out of the Red Devil energy drinks business. 14-Apr-2004 Norwich Union has acquired Oneswoop.com, the London-based online and telephone car sales company with 20 staff. 13-Apr-2004 Rexam has acquired the pharmaceutical packaging division of Compagnie Plastic Omnium of France for £23m. 13-Apr-2004 Wyevale Garden Centres has acquired Carr Gate Garden Centre of Wakefield for £2.5m, taking its total to 123 sites. 09-Apr-2004 Kewill Systems has acquired Paral System Software of India from ShipNow Global Holdings for £2m. 09-Apr-2004 General Machine Products of the US has acquired CBS Metals, the Rutland-based cable installation equipment company with 34 staff, for undisclosed terms. 09-Apr-2004 Robotic Technology Systems is to sell RTS Wright Industries, the US-based supplier of laboratory automation for drug discovery, to Doerfer Corporation for up to £8.8m. 08-Apr-2004 Compact Power is to sell its waste processing plant at Avonmouth to a newly formed company called Batneec Waste Services Bristol for £5m. 08-Apr-2004 British Vita has acquired Atlas, the Australian manufacturer of ceramic tile adhesive, for £1.2m. 08-Apr-2004 Hot Group is to expand its recruitment business by acquiring Mark Education for £3.3m and the Audio Secretaries Agency for £4.2m. 08-Apr-2004 Dantec, the Wirral-based manufacturer of specialist hose products, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 08-Apr-2004 Si Consultants has acquired AC Computers of Ipswich, creating a combined IT services company with 42 staff. 08-Apr-2004 Colemans-ctts has acquired AXIS, the Birmingham-based claimant division of law firm Ricksons, for undisclosed terms, which will involve the transfer of 15 staff to its Walsall office. 08-Apr-2004 Latchways has acquired WinGrip, the supplier of fall protection products, for £1.2m. 08-Apr-2004 Aberdeen Asset Management is to sell APII Group, its property investment management operations, to Arlington Securities and Arlington Investment Management for up to £50m. 07-Apr-2004 BAe Systems North America is to acquire STI Government Systems, the Hawaii-based supplier of photonics and IT services with 125 staff, for £15m. 07-Apr-2004 K3 Business Technology has acquired the remaining 62% of PSE, the Lancashire-based distribution management software company. 07-Apr-2004 Whitehead Mann has acquired Leonard Hull, the London-based executive search firm, for up to £3.6m. 07-Apr-2004 Cobham has acquired DTC Communications, the US-based supplier of surveillance equipment, for £26m. 07-Apr-2004 Pennon has acquired Thames Waste Management, the Leatherhead-based provider of landfill and liquid waste treatment services, for £30m. 07-Apr-2004 Compass is to acquire Mitropa, the operator of concessions in German stations and motorway service areas, for £12m. 06-Apr-2004 Domnick Hunter has acquired PTI Technologies of Sheffield and PTI Advanced Filtration of the US from Esco Technologies for £10m. 06-Apr-2004 Savoy Group, the operator of four luxury hotels, is to be acquired by property investment firm Quinlan Private for £750m. 06-Apr-2004 Salter Housewares, the Kent-based manufacturer of housewares products, has been acquired by HoMedics of the US for undisclosed terms. 06-Apr-2004 Zed Instruments, the Thame-based supplier of printing technology, has been acquired by Luscher of Switzerland. 06-Apr-2004 Audax Communications, the Nottingham-based public relations company with 12 staff, has been acquired by Armadillo PR of Birmingham for undisclosed terms. 06-Apr-2004 Early Learning Centre, the chain of 200 toy shops, has been acquired by Eagle Retail Investments for £62m, and will now be merged with the Daisy & Tom chain. 05-Apr-2004 Edotech, the customer communications outsourcing company, has been acquired by PPM Ventures for about £130m. 05-Apr-2004 Highland Country Foods, the supplier of meat products with 20 staff, has been acquired by ANM Group for undisclosed terms. 05-Apr-2004 Pipex Communications is to acquire Host Europe, the internet services company, for £31m. 05-Apr-2004 UK Coal has sold its Australian mining operations to ABN Amro Rothschild for £21m, and the proceeds will be used to develop coal fields in the UK. 05-Apr-2004 Staples is planning to acquire Office World's 59 UK-based office supplies stores for £33m. 05-Apr-2004 BP is to sell its global special products business, including production and distribution activities with net assets of £10m, to German speciality products company H&R Wasag. 05-Apr-2004 Greencore is to sell Rathbones Bakeries, the operator of eight UK bakeries, to Finedon Mill for £20m. 05-Apr-2004 Clapham House has acquired The Bombay Bicycle Club, the operator of one restaurant in Clapham and five delivery units in Fulham, Wimbledon, Tooting, Putney and Battersea, for £1.8m. 05-Apr-2004 Morris Homes, the Merseyside-based housebuilder, has undergone a £130m management buy-out backed by Royal Bank of Scotland. 05-Apr-2004 Uniworld Communications, the Hampshire-based provider of telecoms services with annual turnover of £20m, has been acquired by Gamma Telecom. 05-Apr-2004 Arriva is to acquire Prignitzer Eisenbahn Gruppe, the operator of three rail franchises in Germany, for £4.2m. 02-Apr-2004 Uniq has sold its poultry operations in Rotherham and Driffield to the Sovereign Food subsidiary of Grampian Country Foods for £12m. 02-Apr-2004 Lawrence, the supplier of pharmaceutical products for the animal health and farming markets, is to sell its Interpet pet products division to Central Garden & Pet Company of the US in a £16m deal. 02-Apr-2004 Communisis has sold its colour cards business to Colwell Industries of the US for £12m, in order to focus on print solutions. 02-Apr-2004 First Technology is to acquire 90% of EnviteC-Wismar, the German manufacturer of sensor products, for £8.4m. 02-Apr-2004 UKbetting has acquired GoldBet SportWetten, the Austria-based online sports betting company, for up to £3m. 02-Apr-2004 JBS Computer Services of West Bromwich is to be acquired by Computer Software Group for £1.9m. 02-Apr-2004 Economatics has acquired Durham Filtration Engineers, the Tyne & Wear-based supplier of filtration products to a wide range of industries. 02-Apr-2004 Business Serve has acquired Domain Names GB for £0.4m and RealTouch Internet for less than £0.1m, as part of a strategy to expand its ISP operations. 01-Apr-2004 YooMedia has acquired Fancy a Flutter, the interactive gaming TV channel, from NDS. 01-Apr-2004 Tellings Golden Miller has acquired Wings Buses of Hayes for £0.5m and the coach hire and day excursion business of Greys-based Frank Harris Coaches. 01-Apr-2004 WH Promation, the County Durham-based supplier of equipment to the food and pharmaceutical industries with 35 staff, has been bought out of administration by Ian Shott Enterprises. 01-Apr-2004 Hornby is to acquire Electrotren, the Spanish toy company, for £5.3m, and is also in negotiations to acquire Lima of Italy out of administration. 01-Apr-2004 Greater London Enterprise has sold GLE Development Capital, its private equity arm, to UK Matrix Group, creating a new fund management company called Matrix Private Equity Partners. 31-Mar-2004 John Palin, the Matlock-based fruit and vegetable wholesaler with 60 staff, has undergone a management buy-out. 31-Mar-2004 Howell Petersen has acquired The Knowledge, the small Cardiff-based event management consultancy, in order to expand its range of marketing services. 30-Mar-2004 Sainsbury is to sell Shaw's, its chain of 202 US supermarkets, to Albertson's for £1.4bn. 29-Mar-2004 Victor Chandler has acquired Sports Bookmakers, the chain of 28 betting shops, for undisclosed terms. 29-Mar-2004 Travelex is to acquire GWK, the Dutch operator of 50 bank branches, from Fortis for £12m. 26-Mar-2004 Entertainment Rights is to acquire the Filmation library of media rights for a number of children's characters from Hallmark of the US for £11m, following a £17m share placing. 26-Mar-2004 Yell has acquired the Feist's telephone directories business in the US for undisclosed terms. 26-Mar-2004 NHP has sold NHP Healthcare Partnerships, its specialist care business, to a management team backed by GI Partners for £11m. 26-Mar-2004 Hyder Consulting is to acquire Adamus Consulting Practice, the Australian consulting engineer with 17 staff, for an initial £0.5m. 26-Mar-2004 HQC, the St Helens-based provider of telecom assembly services with 50 staff, has undergone a £2m management buy-out backed by Merseyside Special Investment Fund. 26-Mar-2004 Wark Clements is to merge with Ideal World, creating a combined Scottish TV production company called IWC Media with 54 staff. 26-Mar-2004 Capita Group is to acquire Aon Health Solutions, the workplace health risk management company with 232 staff, for undisclosed terms. 25-Mar-2004 XecutiveResearch Group is to acquire Accident Exchange, the prestige vehicle replacement company, for £14m, and will change its name to Accident Exchange Group. 25-Mar-2004 Parkdean Holidays has acquired Border Travel Services, the owner of the Southerness Holiday Village near Dumfries, for £5.3m. 25-Mar-2004 Duke Street Capital has sold its collateralised debt obligation funds business to David L Babson of the US for £42m. 25-Mar-2004 Ferraris is to sell Instrument Technology, the Hastings-based manufacturer of components for vacuum systems, to Bansbury for an initial £3.9m. 24-Mar-2004 Wyndeham Press has acquired Graphic Facilities Group, the pre-press and print process specialist with offices in London, Kent and Essex, for an initial £4.6m. 24-Mar-2004 First Technology has acquired Thames Side-Maywood, the manufacturer of custom load cells for the crash barrier testing and industrial weighing markets, from Halma. 24-Mar-2004 Hewlett Group has acquired Portford Builders, the Wetherby-based housebuilder, for undisclosed terms. 24-Mar-2004 Daily Mail & General Trust has sold its aluminium exhibitions to Reed Exhibitions Deutschland for £2m. 23-Mar-2004 SVB Holdings has acquired Credit Indemnity & Financial Services, which was established by Aon to underwrite trade credit insurance business on behalf of several Lloyd's syndicates. 23-Mar-2004 Involvement Packaging has acquired De La Pak of Pershore, in order to offer its range of plastic and metal packaging containers across a wider area. 23-Mar-2004 Babcock International is to acquire Peterhouse, the rail and telecoms maintenance company, for £106m. 23-Mar-2004 First Dental Laboratories (1st Dental) is to acquire Advanced Restorative Techniques, the Sheffield-based manufacturer of dental crowns, for £0.6m, and is also raising £2.5m in a share placing. 23-Mar-2004 BG Group has acquired Aventura Energy, the Canadian gas exploration company with interests in Trinidad and Tobago, for £95m. 23-Mar-2004 Eleco has acquired RB Fabrications, the Norwich-based building products company trading as Prompt Profiles, for £1.2m. 22-Mar-2004 Croma Group has acquired Shawley, the manufacturer of surveillance and monitoring equipment, for a nominal sum. 22-Mar-2004 Ascent Media has acquired the London Playout Centre, the provider of services to commercial TV channels with 280 staff, from RTL for undisclosed terms. 22-Mar-2004 Umeco is to acquire Advanced Composites Group, the Derbyshire-based supplier of aerospace and automotive components, for £44m. 22-Mar-2004 Pira International, the Leatherhead-based print and packaging research organisation with 140 staff, has been acquired by Ciba Specialty Chemicals for undisclosed terms. 19-Mar-2004 Chrysalis has sold CREL, the supplier of audio-visual solutions to the retail and leisure sectors, to a management buy-out for £0.7m. 19-Mar-2004 Corpora is to acquire Exago, the developer of information management software, for £4.9m, and is also raising £2.5m in a share placing. 19-Mar-2004 Somerfield has acquired Aberness, the operator of 36 convenience stores in Scotland with net assets of £4.8m. 19-Mar-2004 Raeburn Christie is to merge with Clark & Wallace to create a combined Aberdeen-based law firm with 110 staff. 19-Mar-2004 Severn Trent Laboratories has acquired Aerotech Laboratories, the US air quality testing company with net assets of about £6m. 18-Mar-2004 Ashtenne Holdings has sold InShops, the owner and operator of 58 properties that are let to independent traders for use as indoor markets, to Geraud UK for £16m. 17-Mar-2004 Chamberlin & Hill is to acquire Russell Castings, the Leicester-based iron foundry, from Elliott for £1m. 17-Mar-2004 Huntsworth is to acquire Trimedia Group, the public relations company with operations in Switzerland, Austria, Germany and France, for up to £17m, as well as the Grayling Group for £10m. 17-Mar-2004 De Witt, the Runcorn-based company with almost 100 staff, has expanded its medicated skincare business with the acquisition of T-Zone for undisclosed terms. 17-Mar-2004 Easynet has acquired Novaxess, the Dutch provider of broadband internet services, for £26m. 17-Mar-2004 New Look has accepted a £699m offer to sell the chain of fashion stores back to its founder, with financial backing from Apax and Permira. 16-Mar-2004 Peterhouse has sold Eve Shorco, its piling and trench support equipment rental business with sites in Glasgow, Andover and the Midlands, to Vp for £2.1m. 16-Mar-2004 Brammer is to sell its equipment rental and calibration operations to a management buy-out operating under the name of De Facto for an initial £10m. 16-Mar-2004 Dawson International is to sell Ballantyne, its Innerleithen-based cashmere factory with 200 staff, to a group of Italian investors for £14m. 16-Mar-2004 Smiths Group is to acquire Dynamic Gunver Technologies, the US manufacturer of aircraft engine components, for £60m. 16-Mar-2004 Pritchard Holdings has acquired Mellor Building Services of Hednesford, securing the future of almost 50 jobs. 16-Mar-2004 SSL International is to sell its wound management business, which includes 244 staff at a factory in Oldham and a warehouse in Manchester, to Medlock Medical, for £55m. 15-Mar-2004 Media Square has acquired Marketplace, the Oxford-based marketing services company with 24 staff, for up to £0.8m. 15-Mar-2004 Technology Services Group has acquired Orlando IT, the Manchester-based computer services company, for undisclosed terms. 15-Mar-2004 Nuaire, the manufacturer of industrial fans with a factory in Caerphilly, is to be acquired by buy-out specialist ECI Partners for £38m. 15-Mar-2004 MEN Arena, the 20,000-seat entertainment venue in Manchester, has been acquired by Anschutz Entertainment of the US for £50m. 15-Mar-2004 Enterprise Inns has agreed to acquire full ownership of Unique Pub Company for £609m, creating a combined chain of 9,000 pubs, which could lead to the loss of 100 jobs at Unique's head office in Thame. 15-Mar-2004 T Clarke has acquired Mitchell & Hewitt, the Derby-based electrical services contractor with 120 staff, for £5.9m. 15-Mar-2004 Smith & Nephew is to acquire Midland Medical Technologies, the Birmingham-based supplier of hip replacement products, for up to £100m. 15-Mar-2004 Barclays Private Equity is to acquire a majority stake in Dualwise, the manufacturer of skin creams and lotions, in a £135m deal. 15-Mar-2004 Havas is planning to sell WCRS, the advertising agency, to a management team for about £20m. 15-Mar-2004 Daily Mail & General Trust is to acquire Jobsite, the recruitment website, for £36m, in order to expand its Associated Newspapers division. 15-Mar-2004 First Choice Holidays has acquired The Adventure Company and Caradona Caribbean Travels for £6.2m, in order to expand its activity holidays division. 12-Mar-2004 TT Electronics has acquired Sensopad Technologies, the Cambridge-based developer of sensors, from Generics for an initial £1.4m. 12-Mar-2004 Chiswell Associates, the wealth management group, has been sold by Nedcor to Swiss bank Sarasin for £21m. 11-Mar-2004 Cognos has acquired Softa, the Oxford-based performance management consulting company, for undisclosed terms. 11-Mar-2004 Hevertech, the Leeds-based air conditioning and heating company with 22 staff, has undergone a management buy-in for undisclosed terms. 11-Mar-2004 Avecia is to sell its biocides business, which has 290 staff at sites in Huddersfield, Grangemouth, Manchester and the US, to Arch Chemicals of the US for £118m. 11-Mar-2004 Milmega, the Ryde-based manufacturer of microwave amplifier systems with 25 staff, has undergone a management buy-out backed by the South East Growth Fund for undisclosed terms. 11-Mar-2004 MORI, the market research company, has agreed terms for a £55m management buy-out backed by Isis Equity Partners and Caledonia Investments. 11-Mar-2004 Aegis Group has acquired Symmetrics Marketing Corporation, the US customer satisfaction measurement research company, for an initial £2.9m. 10-Mar-2004 Associated British Foods is to acquire the Mexican oils and fats business of Unilever for £65m. 10-Mar-2004 Glenfarm Holdings has agreed to sell the Ballymoney Foods frozen chip processing facility to a consortium of local potato growers for undisclosed terms, securing the future of 50 jobs. 09-Mar-2004 Monstermob has acquired Mediaprom, the Sunderland-based competition and gaming company, for an initial £0.6m. 09-Mar-2004 Theratase is to acquire Seravac Biotech, the South African supplier of naturally-derived enzymes to the pharmaceutical industry, for £1.9m. 09-Mar-2004 ID Data has acquired Mids & Horsey, the Petersfield-based producer of smart cards, for an initial £3.3m. 09-Mar-2004 Singer & Friedlander is to acquire the UK and Jersey-based fund management operations of Atlantic Wealth Management for about £20m. 09-Mar-2004 CGI Europe, the London-based financial printer with operations in Australia, Hong Kong and Japan, has been sold by ADP Graphic Communications to a management buy-out. 09-Mar-2004 Maximum Fun has acquired the 110-acre Shires Family Adventure Park near Newquay for undisclosed terms. 09-Mar-2004 BioProgress has acquired Aquafilm, the US developer of pill coating products, for £6m, and has also raised £10m in a share placing. 09-Mar-2004 Huveaux is to acquire Public Affairs Newsletter, the lobbying magazine, for £0.8m. 09-Mar-2004 Eaton Group, the London-based contract caterer, has been acquired by ISS of Denmark for undisclosed terms. 09-Mar-2004 Carphone Warehouse is to acquire Xtra Telecom, the Spanish fixed-line telecoms company, for up to £17m. 08-Mar-2004 Merant, the software company, is expected to be acquired by Serena of the US for £206m, although other bidders could emerge. 05-Mar-2004 Robert Dyas is to be acquired by private equity firm Change Capital for £61m, and is now planning to double its chain of 75 hardware stores over the next five years. 05-Mar-2004 Peterhouse is to sell Jackson Civil Engineering, the Ipswich-based civil engineering contractor with 300 staff, to a management buy-out for £5.5m. 05-Mar-2004 Lastminute.com has acquired Gemstone Travel, the Bracknell-based operator of a travel call centre, for an initial £1.5m. 05-Mar-2004 DS Smith has agreed terms for the £170m acquisition of LINPAC Containers Group, the Louth-based manufacturer of corrugated packaging with 1,320 staff. 04-Mar-2004 Glisten has acquired certain assets of Penguin Confectionery of Carlisle from House of York for £0.4m, while other manufacturing assets are being sold to JF Packaging for £0.3m. 04-Mar-2004 Penny Plain, the operator of seven fashion stores, has undergone a management buy-out, and plans to expand to 40 outlets nationwide within five years. 04-Mar-2004 Bernstein Group, the kitchen manufacturer, has been bought out of administration by a turnaround specialist backed by Enterprise Finance Europe, saving 400 jobs. 04-Mar-2004 Lastminute.com is to acquire rival travel firm Online Travel Corporation for about £55m. 04-Mar-2004 McCann-Erickson has sold its Northern Ireland-based advertising business to a local management team. 03-Mar-2004 BTG has sold VisionTec, the contact lens technology company, to 1-800 Contacts of the US, and the business will be renamed Clearlab UK. 03-Mar-2004 M&M Timber, the Kidderminster-based sawmill, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 03-Mar-2004 Internetdirect, the online supplier of cameras and electrical products, has been bought out of administration, saving 35 jobs. 03-Mar-2004 ICI is to sell the food ingredients business of Quest International, which is based in the Netherlands and employs 900 staff, to Kerry Foods of Ireland for £238m. 03-Mar-2004 Informa and Taylor & Francis are planning to merge to create a £1.1bn information group called T&F Informa. 03-Mar-2004 Hanson has acquired Athens Brick, the US brick manufacturer with 90 staff, for £22m. 02-Mar-2004 Luminar has sold the Camden Palace music venue in London to an undisclosed buyer for £4m, in order to focus on branded entertainment sites. 02-Mar-2004 Arla Foods UK has sold its Alcester-based chilled distribution business to Corby Chilled Distribution for £2.8m. 02-Mar-2004 Vp has acquired the laser and survey rental business of Sokkia, including premises in Crawley, Crewe and Coleshill, for £1.2m. 02-Mar-2004 Digital Classics is to acquire RM Associates Distribution, the distributor of classical music and arts programming, for £1.4m. 02-Mar-2004 United Utilities has acquired Eurocall, the Manchester-based telecoms company with 137 staff, for £42m, in order to expand its Your Communications business. 02-Mar-2004 United Freight Distribution has acquired Transport Delivery Services, the operator of a depot in Hemel Hempstead with 45 staff, for undisclosed terms. 02-Mar-2004 RM has acquired Sentinel Products, the Horsham-based developer of educational network management solutions, for up to £6.1m. 01-Mar-2004 David McLean has acquired Sharman Group, the Devon-based housebuilder, for £20m. 01-Mar-2004 Ten Alps Communications has acquired 3BM Television for up to £1.1m, as part of a strategy to become a leading independent TV production company. 01-Mar-2004 National Express has acquired the Battersea and Croydon-based bus operations of Connex for a nominal sum. 27-Feb-2004 Frazer-Nash Consultancy, the defence and aerospace consultancy with 160 staff, has been acquired by Halliburton of the US for about £12m. 26-Feb-2004 Giles Insurance has acquired Hamroy Insurance Development of Birmingham for £0.8m, and plans to spend £20m on acquisitions over the next five years. 25-Feb-2004 NLT Training Services has acquired Inpartnership Training, the Alfreton-based provider of work-based learning services. 25-Feb-2004 Securicor has confirmed plans for a £4bn merger with Group 4 Falck of Denmark, creating the world's second largest security services group with 340,000 staff in 108 countries. 25-Feb-2004 Multi Group is to sell its event hire subsidiary to Place Settings London for £0.3m, while its two software subsidiaries are being sold to Touchstone for £0.7m. 24-Feb-2004 Spectris has acquired Cintex, the Milton Keynes-based manufacturer of inspection systems. 24-Feb-2004 Micro Librarian Systems, the Stockport-based software supplier, has undergone a management buy-out for an estimated £5m. 24-Feb-2004 Glanbia is selling its UK cheese operations to Cheese Company Holdings, a new joint venture company set up by Milk Link and Glanbia, for £80m. 24-Feb-2004 KEB Fabrications, the Smethwick-based windows manufacturer with 90 staff, has undergone a £1.7m management buy-out. 23-Feb-2004 Tate & Lyle is to acquire the sucralose manufacturing operations of US-based McNeil Nutritionals for £70m. 20-Feb-2004 Telemetrix is to sell its test division to Ideal Industries for £8.5m, in order to focus on its Zetex semiconductor fabrication business. 20-Feb-2004 Kidde is to acquire Gloria KG, the German manufacturer of portable fire extinguishers, for £24m. 20-Feb-2004 Rexam has acquired Polglass, the Polish glass packaging company, from Hunan NV for £10m. 20-Feb-2004 Compass is to acquire Creative Host Services, the US airport concessions company, for £22m. 20-Feb-2004 NPL Technologies, the Nuneaton-based tooling company with 105 staff, has been acquired by Arrk Product Development Group of Japan. 20-Feb-2004 Turton Springs has acquired West Bromwich Springs, the manufacturer of springs for the aerospace, agriculture and defence markets with 41 staff, for undisclosed terms. 19-Feb-2004 Dale Farm has acquired Parmalat's dairy processing site in Kendal, securing the future of 200 jobs. 19-Feb-2004 Coventry Airport is to be acquired by tour operator TUI, in preparation for the launch of the new Thomsonfly low-cost airline. 19-Feb-2004 Vis Entertainment, the Dundee-based computer games developer, is to be acquired by BAM Entertainment of the US for £4.5m. 19-Feb-2004 Sainsbury has acquired Bells Stores, the operator of 54 convenience stores in the north-east, for about £21m. 19-Feb-2004 Merlin Entertainments, the operator of visitor attractions, has undergone a £72m management buy-out backed by Hermes Private Equity. 18-Feb-2004 Scott Goodman Harris, the London-based financial adviser with 25 staff, has been acquired by UBS Bank for undisclosed terms. 18-Feb-2004 RGIT Montrose, the energy industry training and consultancy firm with 150 staff, has been acquired by Aberdeen-based Petrofac for £17m. 18-Feb-2004 Exel is to acquire Fujitsu Logistics, the provider of a range of logistics services to Fujitsu group companies in Japan. 17-Feb-2004 Capita Group has acquired Symonds Group, the provider of consultancy, project management and design services to the property market with 700 staff, for an initial £30m. 17-Feb-2004 Stampiton Labels has undergone a management buy-out from US-based parent Renaissance Mark for undisclosed terms. 17-Feb-2004 BG Group is to acquire El Paso Oil & Gas of Canada for £183m, as part of a strategy to expand its North American gas acreage. 17-Feb-2004 ABI, the East Yorkshire-based caravan and leisure home maker, has undergone a £20m management buy-out backed by Dunedin Capital Partners. 16-Feb-2004 Norwich Food Company, the supplier of meat, fruit and vegetables, has been acquired by Smithfield Foods of the US, and Smithfield has also acquired London-based meat company Ridpath Pek. 16-Feb-2004 Carole Nash has acquired the AA's motorcycle insurance business for undisclosed terms, which will lead to the creation of 20 jobs. 16-Feb-2004 Aquator, the Trowbridge-based sewage filtration company with 55 staff, has been bought out of administration by Copa. 16-Feb-2004 Jaycare, the pharmaceutical packaging company, has been acquired by Phoenix Equity Partners for undisclosed terms. 16-Feb-2004 Ask Central, the chain of 172 pizza restaurants, has accepted a £213m takeover offer from TDR, the owner of PizzaExpress, which beats a previous offer from City Centre Restaurants. 16-Feb-2004 Donatantonio, the food ingredients supplier, has undergone a £12m management buy-out. 16-Feb-2004 Vantis has acquired Redhead French, the Essex-based insolvency and business recovery firm, for an initial £3.5m. 13-Feb-2004 Royal & Sun Alliance has sold its insurance operations in Peru to Rimac Internacional for about £12m. 13-Feb-2004 Vega Insurance Services has acquired Abacans, the Preston-based insurance broker with 24 staff, for undisclosed terms. 13-Feb-2004 Oxoid, the Basingstoke-based supplier of diagnostic products, has been sold by PPM Ventures to Fisher Scientific International for £177m. 13-Feb-2004 Daily Mail & General Trust is to acquire Brand Events, the operator of vitality and outdoor exhibitions, for £5.3m. 12-Feb-2004 Dowding & Mills is to sell its electrical operations in the Netherlands and Luxembourg to a management team operating under the name of AGW Benelux Holdings. 12-Feb-2004 Golley Slater has acquired Northern Profile, the public relations company with 45 staff at offices in Leeds, Newcastle, Manchester and London, for undisclosed terms. 12-Feb-2004 Domino Printing Sciences is to acquire Wiedenbach Group, the German supplier of cable printing equipment, for £7m. 12-Feb-2004 Aviva is to sell the Bournemouth-based commercial insurance business of Hill House Hammond to Folgate Partnership for an estimated £15m, which will involve the transfer of 250 staff. 12-Feb-2004 Taylor Nelson Sofres is to acquire a 75% stake in Area Investigacion, the Spanish market research company with 100 staff, and has an option to acquire the remaining 25%. 12-Feb-2004 Alliance Pharma has acquired four Dermapharm dermatology brands for a total £0.9m, while the infrastructure and staff of Dermapharm which will be divested into a new company called Dermapharm Skincare. 11-Feb-2004 Media Square has acquired Hudson Advertising & Marketing, the Leeds-based retail and home shopping advertising company with 15 staff. 11-Feb-2004 Green Corns, the Rochdale-based operator of 30 care homes with 170 staff, has undergone a £26m management buy-out backed by 3i, and aims to expand the network nationwide over the next few years. 11-Feb-2004 Isoft has confirmed plans to sell its Torex Retail software business to Lynxangel for up to £67m. 11-Feb-2004 ML Laboratories has sold Healthcare Education Services, the St Albans-based provider of pharmaceutical industry training services with annual turnover of £1.2m, to Bridgehead Pharmalicensing Group. 10-Feb-2004 Community Broking Group has acquired Cloughley Insurance Services, as part of a strategy to become a leading insurance broker in the Manchester area. 10-Feb-2004 Quadnetics has acquired Coex, the Lincolnshire-based manufacturer of CCTV equipment for extreme environments, for £1.4m. 10-Feb-2004 Fairfield Group, the Droitwich-based label printing company with 25 staff, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms, backed by Natwest Commercial Banking. 10-Feb-2004 HIA International, the Coventry-based insurance firm with 26 staff and offices in Banbury and Bedford, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms. 10-Feb-2004 Hill Hire has acquired U-Haul, the Spalding-based supplier of refrigerated trucks with 27 staff. 10-Feb-2004 HFS, the Macclesfield-based debt consolidation company with 300 staff, has undergone a £33m management buy-out and plans to create 65 new jobs at its call centre and mortgage division. 10-Feb-2004 FLS Aerospace, the aircraft maintenance company with sites in Stansted, Manchester and Dublin, is to be acquired by Switzerland-based SR Technics for £32m. 10-Feb-2004 Bunzl is to acquire Skiffy Group, the Dutch supplier of plastic components, for £19m, and has also announced the acquisitions of Prolix Packaging of the US and O'Mahony Packaging of Ireland. 10-Feb-2004 Alfred McAlpine has acquired UK Power Construction, the electrical services company that specialises in overhead power lines, for £5.2m. 09-Feb-2004 Pegler, the Doncaster-based manufacturer of plumbing products with 650 staff, has undergone a management buy-out. 09-Feb-2004 Tilney Investment Management is planning to acquire Cardales, the commercial property fund manager and London-based chartered surveying practice, for undisclosed terms. 09-Feb-2004 Furnitureland, the chain of 22 furniture stores, has been acquired by US-owned SB Capital for undisclosed terms. 09-Feb-2004 Cobham has acquired Precision Antennas, the Stratford-upon-Avon-based supplier of antennas, towers and microwave devices, for £3m. 06-Feb-2004 Fenner has acquired Indico Europe, the Manchester-based manufacturer of rubber hoses for commercial vehicles, for £2.8m. 06-Feb-2004 Leopold Joseph, the London-based private bank with 120 staff, is to be acquired by Bermuda-based Bank of Butterfield for £51m. 06-Feb-2004 Interfleet Technology has acquired RSE Management, the London-based rail safety consultant, from GB Railways. 06-Feb-2004 Elektron has sold Milmega, the Isle of Wight-based manufacturer of amplifiers with 22 staff, to a new company called Frameflair for £1m. 05-Feb-2004 Caffyns has acquired a Vauxhall car dealership in Tunbridge Wells from the Piper Group for £2.9m. 05-Feb-2004 Speedy Hire has acquired Petreavie Tools, the operator of tool hire sites in Livingston and Dunfermline, for £0.3m. 05-Feb-2004 Yorkshire Group is to sell part of its US-based textile dyes business to DyStar for £4.8m. 04-Feb-2004 Interregnum has acquired Cellular Design Services, the provider of radio frequency engineering services in wireless network design with 46 staff, for £1.5m. 04-Feb-2004 Orchard End Group, the Gloucestershire-based operator of eight care homes with 110 staff, has been acquired by Sovereign Capital for £12m. 04-Feb-2004 Duckworth Group, the Manchester-based food flavourings company, has been acquired by Cargill of the US for about £40m. 04-Feb-2004 Omnico, the Eastleigh-based chain of builders' merchants, has undergone a management buy-out from Haymills Contracting for undisclosed terms. 04-Feb-2004 Royal Bank of Scotland is to acquire the US credit card operations of Connecticut-based People's Bank for £200m. 04-Feb-2004 Oldham Athletic Football Club has been bought out of administration by a group of New York-based British businessmen for £5m. 04-Feb-2004 Hot Group has acquired Netrecruit, the online recruitment company, for £0.5m. 03-Feb-2004 MOS International has acquired NIM Engineering, the Newcastle-based manufacturer of lifting equipment with 40 staff, from LGH Group for £0.7m. 03-Feb-2004 Brandon Hire has acquired Higgins Hire Centre, the London-based tool hire company, for £0.4m. 03-Feb-2004 Aegis Group has acquired TRBI, the London-based market research company, from a US-based consortium headed by Maritz for £5.2m. 03-Feb-2004 Eurocare Environmental Services, the Newcastle-based hospital waste company with 210 staff, has been acquired by Sterile Technologies of Ireland. 03-Feb-2004 Kier has acquired Tudor Homes, the Lincolnshire-based housebuilder, for £15m. 03-Feb-2004 Richmond Foods has acquired De Roma Ice Cream of Wigan out of administration for £3.4m. 03-Feb-2004 Newsplayer Group is to acquire Betelgeuse Productions, the US-based TV production company, for £3m. 03-Feb-2004 Campus Media is to acquire The Campus Marketing Company, the organiser of student events and fairs, for up to £0.3m. 02-Feb-2004 Candover Investments has sold Clondalkin, the Irish packaging company with operations across the UK, US and Europe, to US-based private equity firm Warburg Pincus for £430m. 02-Feb-2004 Cabot Financial, the provider of consumer debt services, is to undergo a £100m management buy-out backed by Barclays Private Equity. 02-Feb-2004 British Bookshops & Stationers, the Brighton-based chain of 49 book stores, is to be acquired by Eason & Son of Ireland for about £30m. 02-Feb-2004 Fairview New Homes is to acquire Rialto of Hertfordshire, creating a combined housebuilding group with an estimated value of £60m. 02-Feb-2004 Intellexis is to acquire Key Skills, the Nantwich-based provider of computer-based multimedia training courses, for £2.4m. 29-Jan-2004 Computer Services Group of Bridgend is to merge with Qubik Welcomm of Cardiff to create a combined IT services group with turnover of more than £2m, and seven new jobs will be created in Bridgend. 29-Jan-2004 Rexam is to acquire Glas Moerdijk, the Dutch glass packaging plant, from Heineken for £30m. 29-Jan-2004 BC Partners is to acquire Baxi, the boiler manufacturer, from Kidde and a number of private equity houses for about £600m. 29-Jan-2004 AF Blakemore has acquired the McColls confectionery distribution business in Walsall, and the 40 staff will relocate to Willenhall. 28-Jan-2004 Wembley is to be acquired by MGM Mirage of the US for £270m, which could lead to the development of casinos at Wembley's five UK greyhound stadiums. 28-Jan-2004 ARM Holdings has acquired Triscend Corporation, the US supplier of microcontrollers, for £24m. 28-Jan-2004 BOC has sold its packaged gases business in the US to Airgas for up to £110m, including medical, industrial and speciality gases. 28-Jan-2004 Quadnetics is to acquire Look Closed Circuit TV, the supplier of CCTV systems to bus operators, for £6.8m, and is also raising £8m in a share placing. 27-Jan-2004 Park & Paterson, the Cheshire-based metal recycling company, has announced a merger with a division of Bernhard Metals in Derby, creating an enlarged group with 46 staff. 26-Jan-2004 BT Group is to acquire Transcomm, the provider of wireless communications services, for £16m. 26-Jan-2004 Pendragon is to acquire CD Bramall, the operator of 107 car dealerships, for £230m. 26-Jan-2004 Fresh & Wild, the London-based chain of seven organic food stores, is to be acquired by Whole Foods Market of the US for £21m. 26-Jan-2004 Tribal Group has acquired Succession Planning Associates, the executive search company, for up to £3.1m. 23-Jan-2004 Spaldings, the Lincoln-based wholesaler of agricultural machinery parts with 140 staff, has undergone a £10m management buy-out from Dutch company Netagco, backed by 3i. 23-Jan-2004 Tesco has acquired Adminstore, the operator of 45 Cullens, Europa and Harts grocery stores in London, for £54m, and the sites will be rebranded as Tesco Express. 23-Jan-2004 Wookey Hole Caves, the 100-acre tourist attraction in the Mendips, has been acquired by a former director of Cottle's Circus for undisclosed terms. 23-Jan-2004 European Golf Brands, the Kent-based supplier of electric golf trolleys, is to undergo a £26m management buy-out. 22-Jan-2004 Burrows & Close, the Nottingham-based chain of 15 retail pharmacies with more than 100 staff, has undergone a management buy-out. 21-Jan-2004 Bulwell Precision Engineering, the Pinxton-based manufacturer of automotive components, has been acquired by the newly-formed Nasmyth Group, and the workforce is expected to grow by more than 10% this year to about 265. 21-Jan-2004 Kidde has acquired the fire-fighting chemicals division of Croda International, which employs 65 people at sites in Kirkby and France, for £4.4m. 20-Jan-2004 Peterhouse has sold Anglair, its compressed air and pneumatics engineering operation, to Airchannel for £1.5m. 20-Jan-2004 White Young Green has acquired Cetec Consultancy, the Southampton-based provider of structural engineering and project management services, for £0.7m. 20-Jan-2004 Matrix Healthcare is to acquire nursing home operators Newsham of Gloucester and Woodland of Torquay for a total of £2.5m. 20-Jan-2004 Jarrold Printing, the Norwich-based commercial printer with 326 staff, is to undergo a management buy-out from Jarrold, creating a new company called NJP. 20-Jan-2004 Milk Link has acquired Peninsula Milk, the Okehampton-based liquid milk processor with 75 staff, for undisclosed terms. 20-Jan-2004 Charles Stanley is to acquire Fyshe Horton Finney, the Birmingham-based private client broker, for undisclosed terms. 20-Jan-2004 Wireless Group is to acquire Forever Broadcasting, the operator of local radio stations in Wolverhampton, Chesterfield and Bolton, for £8.1m. 20-Jan-2004 Wild Manufacturing, the Birmingham-based manufacturer of precision components for the motor industry with annual sales of £10m, has undergone a management buy-in. 19-Jan-2004 Hemsec, the Rainhill-based insulation supplier, has sold its Installations division to a management buy-out. 19-Jan-2004 Centaur Communications, the publishing group with about 600 staff, is to be acquired by investment bank Numis, in preparation for a flotation on Aim. 19-Jan-2004 WT Foods has sold Bart Spices, the Bristol-based herbs and spices producer, to management. 19-Jan-2004 Alfred Jones has acquired Jacques Loggins, the chain of 13 Spar convenience stores, taking its estate to 82 stores. 19-Jan-2004 Ashtead has sold its Irish chain of 15 plant hire outlets to McCormick Macnaughton for £12m. 16-Jan-2004 Glisten has acquired F Fravigar, the Skegness-based confectionery manufacturer with about 100 staff, for £6.5m. 16-Jan-2004 Multigraphics, the Halifax-based printing company, has undergone a £10m management buy-out backed by 3i. 16-Jan-2004 Technology Services Group has acquired CPA Systems, the Teesside-based IT services company, for undisclosed terms. 16-Jan-2004 Alderley has acquired Specialised Management Services, the Great Yarmouth-based supplier of control panels for hydraulics and wellheads with 50 staff, in a £7m deal backed by Bank of Scotland Corporate Banking. 16-Jan-2004 The Platform Company has acquired Meek Group, the Bristol-based powered access hirer with three branches, out of administration for undisclosed terms. 15-Jan-2004 Lastminute.com has acquired First Option, the hotel booking agency with 200 staff at 21 retail desks and a Stockport call centre, for £12m. 15-Jan-2004 Rotork has acquired Deanquip Valve Automation, the Australian valve actuator distributor, for £0.8m. 14-Jan-2004 Aggregate Industries has acquired Aggregate Supplies, the Wembley-based operator of ten bagging plants for construction materials, for £7.3m, as well as a 51% stake in Concrete Developments, the flooring manufacturer with plants in Fairford and Newark. 14-Jan-2004 Dennis Eagle, the manufacturer of refuse collection vehicles with 580 staff at factories in Warwick and Blackpool, has been sold by Bridgepoint to ABN AMRO Capital for £51m. 14-Jan-2004 Blagden Packaging, the drum manufacturer with 19 facilities in eight countries, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Alchemy for undisclosed terms. 14-Jan-2004 Hawksmere, the London-based provider of training seminars with 60 staff, has undergone a management buy-out backed by ISIS Equity Partners for undisclosed terms. 14-Jan-2004 Ellis Steel has acquired McArthur Faull, the Swansea-based steel supplier, creating a new group called Ellis Faull Steel Stockholders & Processors. 14-Jan-2004 Warmseal Windows, the Tyneside-based double glazing company with 150 staff, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Northern Venture Managers for undisclosed terms. 14-Jan-2004 CSS Stellar has sold ARB, the audio-visual equipment hire company with 30 staff, back to its founder for a nominal sum, and the business will be relocated from Buckingham to Banbury. 14-Jan-2004 White Young Green has acquired Denis Rooney Associates, the Irish project management company with more than 40 staff in Dublin and Belfast, for £4.3m. 14-Jan-2004 Inter Link Foods has acquired Hoppers, the Kent-based bakery with 110 staff, for £5m. 14-Jan-2004 Chesterton, the commercial property company, is to be acquired by Resurge, an Aim-listed company that is exercising its right to acquire a stake from Phoenix Acquisitions. 13-Jan-2004 Expro has acquired a wireless telemetry business from Cobham for £3.2m and a US-based well tractoring business from Smartract for an initial £0.7m. 12-Jan-2004 Jewson has acquired Healey-Ward, the Huddersfield-based builders' merchant with 35 staff. 12-Jan-2004 Laing & Cruickshank, the London-based private client broker, is to be sold by Credit Lyonnais to UBS of Switzerland for about £160m. 12-Jan-2004 Misys has acquired IQ Financial Systems, the US banking software developer, from Deutsche Bank for £24m. 12-Jan-2004 Crystal Drinks, the West Yorkshire-based soft drinks manufacturer with 120 staff, has undergone a management buy-out backed by Epic Reconstruction. 12-Jan-2004 Real Affinity is to acquire Navigator, the sports marketing company, for an initial £0.6m, and £1.3m will be raised in a share issue to fund additional staff and investment in IT equipment. 09-Jan-2004 SP Holdings has acquired Clever TV, the database and online relationship marketing company. 09-Jan-2004 Hot Group has acquired The Graduate, the graduate recruitment company, for an initial £0.3m. 08-Jan-2004 Charles Taylor Consulting has acquired Interprogetti, the Italian engineering design company, through its joint venture with RINA for £0.9m. 07-Jan-2004 Elan is to sell its European sales and marketing business to Medeus UK, a new pharmaceutical company backed by Apax Partners, for £66m. 07-Jan-2004 Specialist Computer Holdings has acquired Pluz of the Netherlands for undisclosed terms, creating an enlarged computer distribution business called ETC Pluz with 160 staff. 07-Jan-2004 Graphicraft, the Bedford-based manufacturer of self-adhesive graphics, has acquired Omnigraphics Industrial of South Africa. 07-Jan-2004 Shepley Window Systems has acquired Interframe, the Devon-based manufacturer of window frames, for an estimated £10m. 07-Jan-2004 Sorsky has acquired WG Bingham, the Immingham and Hull-based distributor of workforce clothing and personal protective equipment, for undisclosed terms. 07-Jan-2004 Lazard is to acquire Panmure Gordon, the London-based stockbroker, from WestLB for an estimated £10m, which will involve the transfer of about 70 staff. 07-Jan-2004 Aegon UK has acquired Aurora Financial, the Canterbury-based independent financial adviser with about 100 staff, for undisclosed terms. 07-Jan-2004 Experian has sold its US print and mail outsourcing business to a management team backed by Sterling Capital Partners for £17m. 07-Jan-2004 Brandon Hire has acquired Ilford Plant Hire & Sales, the operator of tool hire sites in Chelmsford and Rainham, for £0.5m. 06-Jan-2004 Linpac Plastics has acquired Infia, the Italian manufacturer of plastic packaging with 300 staff, for undisclosed terms. 06-Jan-2004 Aneda, the biotechnology company spun out from Edinburgh University, has been acquired by QbioCom of Surrey for £1m. 06-Jan-2004 Electrium, the Brownhills-based electrical products group with 800 staff, has undergone a £38m management buy-out backed by private equity provider LDC. 06-Jan-2004 JP Morgan is to acquire IMO Car Wash Group, the operator of 800 car wash sites across Europe, for £350m, and plans to open more than 40 new sites this year. 06-Jan-2004 Network Health & Beauty has acquired a number of additional brands for £7.2m, including Harmony hairspray, Bodymist, Amplex and Goldspot. 06-Jan-2004 Jardine Lloyd Thompson has acquired HCC Employee Benefits, the Texas-based insurance broker, for £35m, in order to expand its Capital Risk division in the US. 06-Jan-2004 Serco is to acquire Tecknical, the online learning business of Feedback, for £0.4m. 05-Jan-2004 MCS is to acquire the music publishing administration operations of Palan for £2.2m, and is now looking to raise at least £8m in a flotation on Aim. 05-Jan-2004 Bentleys Toyota and Barclays Citroen, the Warrington-based car dealerships, have undergone a management buy-out from Mainland Investments, and the business will be expanded with an increase in the 90-strong workforce. 05-Jan-2004 Jelf Group has acquired Pontin & Stein, the Cardiff-based specialist private medical insurance intermediary, for undisclosed terms. 02-Jan-2004 Microgen has acquired Imago QA, the provider of IT consultancy services for software acceptance and managed risk-based testing, from IQA Holdings for £1.1m. 01-Jan-2004 The information on this page comes from the UK Activity Report. Click here for further details Copyright UK Business Park 1995-2009