S3 Group Limited

Growth Fund - Loans & Equity Case Study

The Company

S3 ID Group Limited (“S3 ID”), based in Rotherham, is the UK’s market-leading provider of innovative location awareness solutions. S3 ID offers a range of unique and patented solutions which improve personnel safety and security in the oil, gas, petrochemical and energy sectors. S3 ID’s systems are typically deployed on both on-shore and off-shore production and storage installations such as drilling platforms and floating storage vessels, for customers such as Statoil, BP and Shell. Current regulations require businesses to have advanced safety and evacuation procedures for all staff working in any hazardous type environments. S3 ID’s products offer advanced safety systems to enable the location and management of personnel in real time.

The Challenge

S3 ID had a number of significant growth opportunities which required additional funding beyond their current facilities. In particular, the development of new access control products, research into new location technologies and significant overseas sales growth all offered significant growth potential and S3 ID required new investment to continue its expansion.

The Solution

The £1.1m investment provided a mixture of development capital funding along with additional working capital facilities. This significant equity investment from Finance Yorkshire’s Equity Fund will enable S3 ID to maintain the controlled expansion it has experienced over the last three years which has resulted in the development of several new innovative products, along with the acquisition of further patents gained in new strategic sales regions around the globe.

The Investment Rationale

S3 ID have a very experienced management team who have established a leading niche market position with strong barriers to entry. In addition, the market has very attractive growth prospects, driven primarily by both regulatory and health and safety aspects. This latest investment will ensure S3 ID’s facility in Rotherham continues to grow, leading the way in new high-end technology.

Future Expectations

Finance Yorkshire were able to offer new funding at a critical time when further investment was needed to support S3’s recent growth. The main priority going forward for S3 is to ensure that their customers continue to receive the same high level of service and support they have come to expect at the same time as offering new and innovative products and solutions to them.

Note: this case study is from Finance Yorkshire’s previous fund. Read more about Finance Yorkshire