Leading UK decoiler USP has today purchased the assets of steel decoiler C Brown and Sons out of administration, chief executive Glyn Costigan told Argus today.
Brown's owner, private equity firm HLD Group, filed a notice to appoint administrators in August, having only purchased the business in April. It failed to find a buyer so the business could not be sold as a going concern.
The acquisition means USP can decoil up to 25mm thick material and will take its capacity to 400,000t/yr across six lines, giving it a larger share of the overall market. It also means the company can process all of its material in house without having to rely on toll-processors.
USP had been decoiling thousands of tonnes a month externally prior to the acquisition. USP acquired decoiler United Steels in August 2024, before which it had no decoiling capacity.
"This growth not only supports our own development but also allows us to introduce service decoiling for customers' own material," Costigan told Argus.
USP will not purchase the laser cutting or profiling machinery at the former Brown's site. "Many of our valued customers are laser subcontractors and profilers and we are committed to supporting their businesses rather than competing with them," Costigan said.
