Pinsent Masons and Macfarlanes have bagged lead roles on CompAir's £197.5m sale to industrial manufacturer Gardner Denver.

The deal saw Macfarlanes instructed for regular client Alchemy Partners, as the majority shareholder in air and gas compressor business (CompAir). The City firm fielded a team led by corporate partner Ian Martin, and including partners Paul Davies, Marc Israel and Elizabeth Sherwood.

Meanwhile, Pinsents was brought in to advise CompAir's management with a team led by technology head Andrew Hornigold, assisted by corporate associate James Willmott.

Macfarlanes originally advised Alchemy on its backing of CompAir's £40m management buy-out from Invensys in 2002. At the time, Reynolds Porter Chamberlain was instructed for the management team, with Pinsents only striking up a relationship after the original buy-out.

Gardner Denver was advised by Baker & McKenzie with corporate partners Peter Strivens and Dieter Schmitz, based in London and Chicago, respectively, leading the team.

Hornigold said: "The deal shows that corporate buyers with cash reserves are in a position to outbid equity buyers in the current financial market. Eighteen months ago there would have been more equity buyers, but now corporate buyers with cash can buy good businesses without private equity competition."

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