Exit · Industrial Services

Industrial Services Deals: Exit Preparation Done Right

When the deal is industrial services and the question is Exit Preparation, the structure decisions in the first 30 days outlast the next five years. This is where Jason Powell works.

EV range $10M to $130M EV EBITDA $3M to $22M Audience Independent Sponsor
The deal context

Every industrial services acquisition has its own gravity. Exit Preparation is the workstream where independent sponsor counsel earns the seat.

The typical industrial services platform sits at $10M to $130M EV with EBITDA in the $3M to $22M range. The thesis runs on regional consolidation of plant maintenance, specialty contracting, or rentals. An EMR over 1.0 will cost you a half-turn at close unless you fix the story upfront.

The moves

How Exit Preparation actually gets structured.

  1. Clean the cap table 18 months before the planned exit window.

  2. Refresh the IP, employment, and customer contract files for diligence readiness.

  3. Build a quality-of-earnings ready financial package well before bankers come in.

  4. Coordinate sponsor exit economics with the LP waterfall and any rolled-equity holders.

  5. In industrial services, layer in MSA renewal calendar mapped pre-LOI as part of the Exit Preparation workstream.

The common mistake

Starting exit prep when the banker calls. By then, every fix costs price.

Jason's take
"Exit prep is what separates a 6x outcome from an 8x outcome. The work starts before the banker."
Jason Powell · Exit Preparation
Capital after close

The deal is one thing. The capital that opens up after close is another.

The capital that opens up post-close, from refinancing to growth equity to strategic exit, runs through a small set of Wall Street relationships. That network is built in.

MONTH 18
Senior refi
MONTH 24
Dividend recap
MONTH 36
Growth equity
YEAR 4–5
Strategic exit
ENGAGE THE PRACTICE

Exit Preparation for Industrial Services, on independent sponsor terms.

Independent sponsor counsel that already speaks fluent deal-by-deal economics, structures clean LPAs, and travels with capital markets relationships for what comes after close.