Precept bought by US group for £28m

Precept Programme Management has been bought by US listed firm Navigant Consulting for £28m, QS News can reveal.

The 50-strong programme management and dispute resolution firm will now spearhead an international push by Navigant, the US firm claimed. Navigant chief financial officer Ben Perks also revealed that the deal was 75% in cash and 25% in shares.

Perks said the firm expected a massive growth in demand for dispute resolution services in construction in Europe, the Middle East and the Far East. The firm recently opened offices in Hong Kong and Shanghai. "London is the hub for international dispute resolution opportunities," he said.

Speaking about the price Navigant paid, Perks said: "We have a tremendous amount of respect for their professional capabilities. This is an important transaction for us and it gives us a real business base in a fabulously growing marketplace."

Precept was formed in 1998 by ex-EC Harris boss Brian Norton and ex-O'Brien Kreitzberg director David Barry as well as ex-Currie & Brown director Andy Wheaton, who has since left the firm and set up his own company. The firm has become heavily involved in PFI and PPP work, especially in the education sector. It will join forces with an existing 60-strong Navigant presence in London, run by Don Harvey.

In a statement released today Norton said: "We are looking forward to the increased opportunities this combination creates for both organisations."

More coverage on this story will apear in next Friday's edition of QS News (out 31 March).

See www.navigantconsulting.com for the official statement on the acquisition