Eighth and final investment for private equity fund “Gradiente II”

Eighth and final investment for private equity fund “Gradiente II”, managed by Gradiente SGR. Gradiente II has completed the investment in DF Elettronica S.r.l., a company active in Electronic Manufacturing Services (EMS), specialized in the assembly of electronic boards for advanced technology applications for various sectors including medical devices, industrial, information and communication technologies.

Founded in 1983 and based in Calenzano (Florence), DF Elettronica boasts a leadership position in the so-called high-mix/low-volume segment thanks to a business model that leverages the high level of automation and optimization of its processes to offer its customers the highest standards in terms of flexibility, technology and quality of service. In 2022, DF Elettronica is expected to achieve a turnover of approximately 14 million euros.

The operation pursues a development strategy that should allow the company’s position to consolidate  organically through the integration of other complementary operators in a broad market such as the EMS one. In addition, it strengthens the skills in the crucial phases of the production process such as design and engineering, according to a “one-stop-shop” platform logic that allows DF Elettronica to increasingly position itself as the technological partner of reference for its customers.

Gradiente II has acquired an 80% stake in the company, while the remaining 20% will be held by the two founding partners, Daniele Ciappi and Massimo Brogi.

“We are aware that the EMS sector is going through an important development phase due to the critical issues that electronics has assumed in various sectors of economy. In this context, we see Gradiente as the perfect partner to support DF Elettronica in its growth path. Thanks to the proven experience and entrepreneurial attitude and the people-centric approach, we are confident that Gradiente’s support will accelerate the expansion of our business, allowing our vision to become real. The goal is to continue investing and innovating, anticipating market needs, responding to every request at the highest quality level and guaranteeing an excellent service” says Daniele Ciappi, founding partner and CEO of DF Elettronica, and Massimo Brogi, founding partner .

“We are very satisfied with the investment in DF Elettronica. We are proud to support a technological excellence in its growth path. We believe that the company, thanks to its distinctive technological and process skills, long-term experience joined to our support, will be able to expand its offer and its presence in the reference market while benefiting from the favorable trends that are expected to characterize the sector in the coming years. We are pleased to support the company in this development project which could potentially also involve other operators capable of bringing synergistic skills within a well-organized and productively efficient reality such as DF Elettronica” comments Carlo Bortolozzo, Founding Partner of Gradiente SGR.

Gradiente team that followed the operation was made up of Carlo Bortolozzo, Alberto Calgaro and Massimiliano Doria. As part of the transaction, Gradiente was assisted by NCTM Advant Studio Legale for contracts and legal due diligence, PwC for accounting due diligence, Alkemy for business due diligence, Studio Russo de Rosa e Associati for tax due diligence and Ramboll for EHS due diligence.

The sellers were assisted by Alantra as financial advisor, by Dentons law firm for legal assistance and by Finanziariamente SAS and Studio Associato Santi-Casati for accounting and tax aspects. Notarial assistance was provided by the Studio Notoria of Padua.