Management buyout announced by Adams Consulting Group

Adams Consulting Group (ACG), the well-known Scottish project management consultancy behind a host of big projects, has today announced that majority shareholder and chief executive David Adams has sold the business.

Majority shareholder David Adams has sold the business. Picture: ACG

The deal results in the business being taken over by its other shareholder, Barry McAllister. He has been with Glasgow-based ACG for more than 12 years and with predecessor MPM Adams for a further eight, and acquired the balance of the equity of the company in a management buyout (MBO).

From its Glasgow base, ACG has worked on big UK developments. These include the No.1 George Square office development and the new Victoria & Stobhill Hospitals in Glasgow, London’s South Bank Tower and the new Medical Sciences building for University of St Andrews.

McAllister has invited fellow director Ranald Ord to join him as an equity director in the practice, which is currently involved with various commercial, education and renewable technology projects with a value of more than £675 million.

Adams, who will continue to work with ACG as a consultant on projects in London, St Andrews and Sao Paulo in Brazil, commented: “I have been thinking for some time about managing the succession of the business and concluded that this was the right step.

“ACG is a specialist company which offers niche services to blue chip clients and the MBO retains the identity and independence of the company”.

McAllister said: “It is an exciting time for the business which is currently working on various landmark projects for clients across the country.”

Adams’ role in the success of ACG and its predecessors spans three decades. He returned from working overseas in 1987 to set up a project management subsidiary for Glasgow quantity surveyors, Muirheads Muir and Webster.

Under Adams’ leadership, Muirheads established itself as a leading project management consultancy, and he led an MBO in 1991, changing the name to MPM Adams.

The success of MPM Adams and its expansion into Manchester, London and Edinburgh brought it to the attention of Capita PLC who acquired the business in 1999, changing the name in the process to MPM Capita.

As a subsidiary of Capita Property Services, the company doubled its turnover to £15 million inside three years.

After three years Adams decided to return to owner managed private practice and left Capita to establish Adams Consulting Group in 2003.