Evander Locks & Glazing (Evander), the nationwide 24/7 emergency response and repair provider of locks and glazing, is to be acquired by VPS, the vacant property, site security and property services specialists. VPS will acquire Evander from Bridgepoint Development Capital (BDC) and Lloyds Development Capital (LDC), who have co-owned the asset since 2011.

Headquartered in the UK, the VPS Group leads the European vacant property services market, providing a full suite of specialist solutions across the complete property lifecycle, as well as offering a wide range of services covering remote sites and occupied property. Its activities cover security solutions (including its award-winning SmartAlarms, CCTV, steel screens, manned guarding and live-in guardians), and property management (clearing, cleaning, waste disposal, maintenance and grounds services) to both social housing and commercial customers, such as property managers, retailers, industrial, construction and infrastructure companies. It has operations across mainland Europe including more than 20 Services Centres in the UK.

Evander, headquartered in Norwich, is the UK's leading nationwide emergency response glazing and locks business. Through its national infrastructure of 19 depots and 297 engineers, it provides 24/7 response and fulfilment services to UK domestic insurers, the commercial sector and direct to consumers. With two thirds of its business coming from the insurance sector, clients include Aviva, LBG and RSA.

Commenting on the acquisition, VPS Group CEO Mark Silver said: 'Evander's excellent reputation for providing responsive security services is a great fit to our market-leading property security and services business. With very similar customer requirements and challenges, we are confident that by working together we can expand both our operational spread and develop into new segments. We look forward to working with the Evander team to expedite this.'

Rick Francis, CEO of Evander, added: 'The business will benefit significantly from becoming part of a larger platform with ambitious plans for growth in the sectors we operate. It will allow us to accelerate the level of innovation to the services we currently provide and to extend a wider range of services to our client base. Our team are delighted to be joining a business that has substantial opportunities for growth.

Advisers involved in the transaction included:

- for VPS: PWC (M&A), Mischon de Reya (legal)

- for BDC and LDC: Clearwater (M&A), Travers (legal)