1. Private equity investors, Jacobs Capital and Vulindlela Holdings, have purchased a majority stake in leading mobile
crane hire company, Summit, for an undisclosed sum.
The company, which is the market leader in the Western Cape and has a presence in the Eastern and Northern Cape,
has substantial growth prospects nationally.
The inclusion of new private equity partners will enable it to realise a number of major growth opportunities in key areas
such as the oil and gas sector and wind turbine electricity generation industry, explained Jacobs Capital chief executive,
Wessel Jacobs.
Summit provides mobile cranes, trained operators and related vehicles and rigging services to clients as part of short to
medium term contracts or one off projects. It is the dominant mobile crane provider in the Western Cape and is currently
servicing clients in many different industries.
In terms of this transaction, the Vulindlela / Jacobs Capital consortium will hold a majority stake in the business with
chief executive and company founder, Mike Grant, chief financial officer, Clint Correia, and chief operations officer,
Leonard Opensaw, each owning a share in the company.
CEO Mike Grant, who launched the company to provide a one stop lifting and moving solution in mid-2010, said that he
realised that there was a need to take on private equity partners to maintain Summit's steep growth curve earlier this
year and to involve partners with the right BEE credentials .
During its first four years in operation, Summit has had double digit growth in turnover year on year and with the new
partners expects to carry on this growth. Last year, Summit Crane Hire invested over R50 million in growing its fleet,
adding forklifts, trucks and mobile cranes. It has a staff of 100, including highly skilled rigging crews, project managers
and health and safety officers.
Grant, who has turned down at least 10 offers to purchase the company, said that because the company was operating
at full capacity and needed even more additional equipment, it had been forced to pass up a number of lucrative
contracts.
He said Jacobs Capital and Vulindlela would add value to the existing dynamic team. With an improved BEE scorecard
and financial backing, the company is now well positioned to work on large infrastructure projects in both the public and
private sectors.
Jacobs Capital's investment manager, Tyrone Bricknell, said that the investment in Summit Crane Hire was an exiciting
one. The business had a strong track record and the investment was supported by a strong and experienced
management team that now included shareholder partners.
“The management shareholders are highly experienced and we see this as an opportunity to partner with them for the
long term. We would like to use our investment in Summit Crane Hire as the foundation for further growth in this sector.
We would like to grow the company either through acquisition of similar businesses or organically and we believe that it
will be the market leader not just in the Cape but throughout the country in the near future,” he said.
The balance sheet has significant assets which are underpinned by strong earnings with sound growth projections for
2017 and beyond which was another important investment criteria.
Summit Crane Hire currently focuses on the oil and gas, mineral and logistical support, civil infrastructure, industrial and
construction sectors. This diversity is a strength, because if there is a downturn in one sector, assets can be reassigned
to others.
Jacobs said that the Summit Crane Hire investment was a valuable addition to the Jacobs Capital portfolio. With
investments set to reach R2 billion shortly, it has been on an aggressive acquisition trail over the past year.
Summit Crane Hire marks the fourth major investment for Jacobs Capital over the past two years.
For more information about the companies:
www.summitcrane.co.za
www.jacobscapital.co.za
www.vulindlelaholdings.co.za/
Jacobs Capital & Vulindlela Holdings
Invest in Summit Crane Hire

2. Jacobs Capital
Jacobs Capital is a KZN based corporate investment and transactional advisory firm. In addition to its investment
arm, it includes an independent division with a service offering that includes restructuring of balance sheets,
mergers and acquisitions, turn-around strategies and the repositioning of businesses. It focuses on long term
stabilisation for medium to large businesses in a short period of time. It drives a sound and competitive business
model, a clear and focused strategy, an efficient board and reporting structure, sufficient working capital, good
corporate governance and risk management structures, as well as a sound and well-structured balance sheet. The
company is headed by chief executive, Wessel Jacobs. As a business development and management
professional, he has over 20 years' experience in leading, developing, acquiring and selling multi-million rand
enterprises.
Vulindlela
Vulindlela (which in Nguni means to blaze the trail and establish an indelible pathway) is an investment holding
company founded in 1995. Over the past 20 years, the company has consistently established its investment
footprint in selected strategic sectors which include Public Private Partnerships, healthcare and property
development and developed in depth expertise, key institutional relationships and partnerships in these areas.
Vulindlela's vision is to achieve pre-eminence in its chosen sectors whilst, at the same time, diversifying its
portfolio.
Vulindlela is a 100% black owned and managed company. In terms of its Black Economic Empowerment (In
accordance with the Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Act of 2013) rating, the company is a Level One
Contributor with a 60% black women ownership. Vulindlela has a procurement recognition level of 135% with
unrestrained operational capacity. This is the result of its solid track record, expertise and active approach to
investment curatorship. Vulindlela's investments are spread nationally and include Gauteng, Free State and
KwaZulu-Natal.
(L-R) Clint Correia (Summit Financial Director), Nomfobe Ndzelani (Summit HR Manager), Leonard Openshaw (Summit Operations Director),
Michael Grant (Summit CEO) & Tyrone Bricknell (Jacobs Capital investment manager)