ISS enters the U.S. market by acquiring Sanitors,
Inc., a provider of cleaning and other facility services with annual revenues of
DKK 1.8 billion and operations nationwide in the U.S.
Copenhagen, 23 May
2007 - The ISS Group today announced that ISS is launching operations
in the U.S. through the acquisition of Sanitors, Inc., a major U.S. provider of
cleaning and a range of other facility services.
Sanitors, Inc. has
annual revenues of approximately DKK 1.8 billion, 10,000 employees and a service
offering in cleaning, building maintenance, landscaping, bridge tending and
security. The company operates through 8 divisions in 42 of the country's 50
states.
ISS Group CEO Jørgen Lindegaard said: "By starting up operations
in the U.S., ISS has fulfilled one of its most important strategic goals. We
cannot pursue our ambition to lead facility services globally without operating
in the world's biggest economy. The U.S. economy has enormous potential for
outsourced facility services, and ISS wants to explore the opportunities as an
important part of the Group's continued expansion."
"Sanitors, Inc. is
the right company to provide us with a new U.S. platform. It has a great
reputation in the market and is a quality service provider. It has nationwide
coverage and a consistent financial performance", Jørgen Lindegaard said.
"Furthermore, Sanitors is the right match for ISS, in terms of size, service mix
and corporate culture. This is a large acquisition providing ISS with the
necessary market leverage from the outset, yet it has a manageable size in line
with our general acquisition strategy," he added.
During the last 5
years, Sanitors, Inc. has grown revenues by 20% annually, and the company's
organic growth and operating margin are in line with that of the ISS Group.
Sanitors Inc. was founded by its current CEO, Mr. Darrell Glover, in
1978. Mr. Glover, who will continue as CEO and Country Manager of the new ISS
Facility Services Inc., said, "This is a great opportunity to maximize our
potential within the U.S. market. Our current range of services combined with
ISS' global reach and expertise will open up new opportunities for us to provide
our clients with a wider range of solutions and eventually a one-stop-shop for
all their facility service needs.
"I founded Sanitors 30 years ago and
have seen it grow to what it is today. I cannot think of a better new owner and
business partner than ISS. As a part of ISS, we will gain access to global best
practices and new opportunities will become available to our employees as our
company develops", Mr. Glover added.
The acquisition agreement was
signed in San Antonio, Texas, the home of Sanitors' headquarters. The
acquisition is expected to be closed during June, 2007.
Further Information:
Jørgen Lindegaard
Group CEO, ISS
Tel: +45 38 17 00 00
Stig Pastwa
COO, Belgium,
France, Italy, Latin America, Portugal, Spain and the U.S. ISS A/S
Tel: +45
38 17 00 00
Mobile: +45 23 34 35 54
Anders Krogenberg
Vice
President, Head of Group Communications, ISS A/S
Tel: +45 38 17 62 41
Mobile: +45 20 70 62 41
About the ISS
Group
The ISS Group is one of the world's leading Facility Services
Groups. The ISS Group's annual revenues exceeded DKK 55 billion in 2006 and ISS
now has more than 410,000 employees in 50 countries across Europe, Asia, North
America, Latin America and Australia.
About Sanitors Inc.
Headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, Sanitors, Inc. is a U.S. major
provider of cleaning and other facility services such as landscaping, building
maintenance and security. Industries served include Class A Office, Corporate
Campus, Governmental, Industrial, Retail, Medical, Education, Sports and
Entertainment. Sanitors, Inc. has revenues of DKK 1.8 billion (US$320 million)
and 10,000 employees.