The Birmingham office of a corporate finance firm has advised shareholders of a Midland engineering company on its £30 million sale to a US technology giant.

Catalyst Corporate Finance advised LH Group, based near Burton on Trent, on its acquisition by Wabtec Corporation.

LH Group, which has 350 employees and annual sales of more than £40 million, overhauls diesel engines, transmissions, powerpacks and bogies for rolling stock operators and original equipment manufacturers, with more than 90 per cent of sales in the rail market.

Wabtec is a global provider of technology and services primarily for the rail and transit industry.

The addition of LH means Wabtec will become a full-service provider to the UK rail industry.

Catalyst worked with the family shareholders of LH over six months to identify buyers for the business.

The deal was led by Catalyst partner Richard Sanders, who said: “We are delighted to have worked with the shareholders of LH who, having spent 50 years building one of the UK’s leading rail engineering businesses, wanted to secure the future of the business with a partner that would continue to invest in the future.

“Wabtec demonstrated that they saw LH as a very important part of its European strategy and will ensure the business is in safe hands going forward.”

Albert Neupaver, Wabtec’s president and chief executive, said: “LH complements and strengthens our existing aftermarket presence in the UK by enabling us to offer complete overhaul services for a variety of passenger transit vehicles and components, including engines and transmissions.

“In addition, the company’s engineering skills, focus on quality and long-standing customer relationships make LH a good fit with Wabtec.”

Through its subsidiaries, Wabtec manufactures a range of products for locomotives, freight cars and passenger transit vehicles.

The company also builds new switcher and commuter locomotives and has built an aftermarket presence in the UK, with its Wabtec Rail and Brush Traction units.

Acquired in 1998, Wabtec Rail overhauls and refurbishes passenger transit vehicles and related components.

Brush Traction, acquired in 2011, provides locomotive overhauls, services and aftermarket components, including traction motors, electrical control systems, and wheelsets.