Avingtrans (AIM:AVG), which designs and manufactures critical components for the energy, medical and industrial sectors, has acquired the intellectual property, trading history and brand of Joseph Oat Corporation for a cash consideration of $2.5m.
Joseph Oat has been a well-known name in the US nuclear supply chain since the 1980s and 1990s, supplying performance-critical components to major nuclear industry players and maintaining a significant installed base for service and replacement work.
The deal follows the planned retirement of Joseph Oat's owners and managers.
Avingtrans is funding US nuclear expansion elsewhere in the group through a separate £21m placing completed in July, with proceeds directed largely at expanding the Energy Steel facility in Rochester Hills, Michigan, and Hayward Tyler's manufacturing capacity.
The group said its nuclear businesses delivered strong performance in the first quarter of the new financial year, securing contracts with new customers including long-lead items for TerraPower and replacement equipment for the Duane Arnold nuclear power station.
Chief operating officer Austen Adams said the Joseph Oat IP "extends the Group's reach into legacy installed equipment across US power plants and other process industries, where ownership of the original designs removes the need to reverse-engineer components and ensures replacement parts fit first time."
Adams added that the acquisition "broadens the Group's engineered product portfolio without the associated design cost, widens access to qualified AP1000 components, and brings valuable brand equity through the Joseph Oat name."
Management said the deal is complementary to N-stamp-certified US nuclear businesses Hayward Tyler and Energy Steel, which it positions as suppliers across new build, fusion, life extension and decommissioning programmes.