PROPOSED WEBSITE • AMS INVEST • PRIVATE DESIGN PREVIEW
ACQUISITION • TURNAROUND • GROWTH
Strong businesses.
New ownership.
A new direction.
We acquire profitable, underperforming and distressed SMEs with £5m+ revenues in industrial software, technology, specialist engineering and manufacturing.
Helping owners achieve an exit, supporting succession and working with restructuring advisers and private equity investors to create lasting value.
£5m+
Wider UK opportunities considered
Technical sectors
Products, expertise and defensible capability
Hands-on
Operational and financial turnaround
North West focus
Wider UK opportunities considered
PROFITABLE BUSINESSES / OWNER EXITS & SUCCESSION
A business to be proud of.
An exit to look forward to.
You do not need to be facing financial difficulty to talk to AMS.
We are equally interested in good, profitable businesses where the owner or owners want to retire, realise the value they have built or move on to their next chapter — particularly where there is no family or management succession plan.
For established businesses in our target sectors with £5m+ annual revenues, we offer a direct, discreet conversation about a sale and the future of the business. We understand that your team, customer relationships and legacy matter alongside the financial outcome.
THE AMS APPROACH
We see the potential behind the problem.
A good product, established customers and skilled people can be obscured by weak margins, financial pressure or an ownership structure that no longer works.
AMS Invest brings commercial, financial and operational experience to businesses that need a change of direction. We work with sellers and their advisers to assess the opportunity, develop a credible acquisition structure and take an active role in improving performance.
Our focus is practical: stabilise the business, rebuild profitability and create a stronger platform for growth and a future exit.
THE AMS APPROACH
Technical businesses.
Real underlying value.
We look for specialist capability, valued customer relationships and products or services with a clear reason to exist..
.png)
01 / INDUSTRIAL SOFTWARE
Software & technology
Industrial software, engineering applications, B2B technology and specialist digital solutions. Businesses with valuable IP, embedded customer relationships or recurring revenue.
.png)
02 / SPECIALIST ENGINEERING
Engineering & automation
High end engineering, automation, precision systems and technical services where specialist knowledge and customer requirements support a defensible market position.
.png)
03 / ADVANCED MANUFACTURING
Manufacturing & components
Specialist manufacturers, engineered components and technically differentiated production businesses with opportunities to improve productivity, margins and commercial performance
Profitable or in need of change
Healthy, profitable businesses seeking new ownership, alongside businesses facing losses, margin erosion, cash pressure or a need for restructuring.
Technical substance
Established customers, specialist expertise, valuable IP or differentiated engineering and manufacturing capability. Is this conversation helpful so far?
£5m+ revenues
Annual turnover of at least £5 million. Historical revenue may be relevant where recent trading has contracted.
Motivated ownership
Owner retirement, planned exits or no succession plan, alongside PE portfolio disposals and non-core subsidiaries.
FOR PROFESSIONAL INTERMEDIARIES
A practical buyer
for complex situations.
Direct conversations with the people making the acquisition decision. A clear focus on the business, the process and what is achievable.
RESTRUCTURING & INSOLVENCY
Include AMS in your buyer process.
We welcome introductions from restructuring firms, insolvency practitioners and corporate finance advisers managing
accelerated sales or businesses facing financial pressure.
-
Pre-insolvency sales and accelerated M&A processes
-
Going-concern acquisitions and business or asset sales
-
Situations requiring operational involvement after acquisition
-
Timetables and information requirements agreed directly
Please send a non-confidential teaser, the process timetable and the required next steps. We can then assess fit and discuss NDA and data-room access.
PRIVATE EQUITY & CORPORATE SELLERS
A new owner for an underperforming asset.
A portfolio company may retain strong products and customer relationships while no longer fitting its investor’s priorities or requiring more operational support than the current owner can provide.
-
Underperforming portfolio companies
-
Non-core subsidiaries and complex carve-outs
-
Businesses requiring commercial or financial rebuilding
-
Ownership transitions with a credible turnaround plan
We assess the underlying business and the requirements of the seller, with a view to a workable transaction and a clear plan for the next stage.
RELEVANT EXPERIENCE / VIRTALIS
From operational turnaround to strategic exit.
INDUSTRIAL SOFTWARE
HANDS-ON TRANSFORMATION
STRATEGIC SALE
Virtalis illustrates the type of technical business and ownership challenge AMS understands.
Working alongside co-investor Alpina Partners, Andy and Barrie took an active role in the commercial, financial and operational turnaround of the industrial visualisation software business from January 2023.
The work combined business restructuring, cost control and renewed commercial focus, followed by the sale to Virtualware in September 2026.
That experience informs our next acquisitions: identify the underlying value, address the performance issues and build a business capable of attracting a strategic buyer.
Draft case-study copy for approval before use on the public AMS website.
HOW WE WORK
From first conversation
to a workable transaction.
01
Establish fit
Review the sector, revenue, trading position, seller objectives and process timetable.
02
Understand the business
Under NDA, assess financial performance, customers, products, operations and funding needs.
03
Shape the proposal
Develop the acquisition structure and turnaround plan. Agree diligence, financing and completion requirements.
04
Take an active role
Work with the team to stabilise trading, strengthen financial control and deliver operational improvements.
WHO WE ARE
Investors with
an operator’s perspective.
AMS Invest is a family-operated investment business led by Andy and Barrie Hill, with a UK and Spanish base.
Our approach draws on experience of founding, growing and exiting businesses, alongside advisory and hands-on work in turnaround, transformation and acquisitions.
Barrie Hill
FINANCIAL & TRANSACTION
Financial oversight, acquisition assessment and coordination of transaction advisers.
Andy Hill
COMMERCIAL & OPERATIONAL
Commercial leadership, business performance and the practical delivery of change.
START A CONVERSATION
Have a business
we should look at?
Send us a brief outline of the opportunity and the timetable. We will assess it against our acquisition focus and discuss the next steps.
For initial contact, a non-confidential summary is enough. Detailed information can follow once the appropriate confidentiality arrangements are in place.
Manchester, UK · Málaga, Spain