RN Capital is a self-funded search vehicle, led personally by Dr. Sridhar Narayanan, to acquire and operate a founder-led UK industrial business — and grow it into the nucleus of a lasting regional or national platform.
The four ideas underneath every decision RN Capital makes — before a single deal is on the table.
To build enduring businesses that enable the safe, efficient and resilient functioning of modern society.
We invest in mission-critical capabilities whose long-term demand is driven by enduring societal needs rather than short-term economic cycles.
We create value through operational excellence, disciplined capital allocation, and adjacent acquisitions that strengthen the whole ecosystem.
Success is measured not only by financial returns, but by the long-term resilience we create for customers, employees, communities and future generations.
Twenty years operating at the intersection of complex engineering systems and large-scale commercial execution, across the power, energy, and industrial infrastructure markets.
I am launching this search to acquire and personally lead a business within the invisible layer of critical physical infrastructure the modern economy relies on to operate with absolute reliability.
A Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and experience as a Global Chief Engineer give me command of the underlying physics and technical complexity of mission-critical assets — and let me earn the trust of technicians, engineers, and blue-collar operational teams instantly.
Directly managed P&Ls up to $1.5B, delivering a 25% year-over-year increase in profitability and scaling a new business unit from zero to $50M. Fluent in the exact operational levers that scale a small business: CRM implementation, data-driven pricing, sales incentive architecture, and channel optimization.
Maintained >90% first-fill rates through periods of massive global supply chain disruption — the discipline to insulate a business from macroeconomic shocks and protect delivery for customers.
UK industrial businesses generating £5–30m revenue, with strong engineering IP but weak commercial execution, in resilient sectors — power infrastructure, electrification, industrial automation, critical infrastructure. Disciplined commercial transformation, selective operational improvement, and adjacent bolt-on acquisitions create disproportionate enterprise value.
We assume geopolitical fragmentation, trade barriers, supply chain disruption, and regulatory divergence are permanent, not temporary. We build businesses that compound despite them, not because they disappear. We are not seeking a company that survives uncertainty; we are seeking one that becomes more valuable because uncertainty exists.
A ranked list of the ecosystems we know best, and the financial profile a target needs to fit our thesis.
Ranked by operator advantage and adjacency opportunity
| Lane | Priority | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Critical power / electrical infrastructure | 1 | Maximum operator advantage |
| Industrial automation / controls | 2 | Technical + commercial + adjacency opportunity |
| Testing / inspection / asset integrity | 3 | Recurring / compliance revenue can improve EBITDA quality |
| Water / wastewater engineering | 4 | Essential infrastructure, fragmented ecosystem |
| Industrial cooling / thermal systems | 5 | Strong structural demand, particularly critical infrastructure |
Core range, with stretch flexibility for the right business
| Criterion | Core Target | Stretch |
|---|---|---|
| Normalized EBITDA | £1.5M – £5M | £1M – £6M |
| Preferred entry multiple | 3 – 4× | Up to 5× |
| Implied core EV | £4.5M – £20M | ~£5M – £25M |
| EBITDA margin | Preferably >10–12% | Case dependent |
| Employees | <200 | Hard-ish preference |
| EBITDA positive | Yes | Yes |
| Cash conversion | Strong / understandable | Must be fixable |
| Geography | UK | UK |
RN Capital is a self-funded search — no capital raised for the search phase itself. £100k of personal capital funds sourcing, diligence, travel, and advisor fees over an 18-month search window, with no salary draw against it.
This structure keeps 100% search autonomy with the searcher, minimizes dilution, and asks equity partners to underwrite a specific deal rather than an open-ended search.
Underwrite a specific deal, not an open-ended search. Co-invest at the point of acquisition, alongside a searcher who has already funded diligence personally.
Get in touchSenior debt sits at the base of every deal RN Capital structures — typically ~60% of the capital stack against a profitable, cash-generative UK industrial business.
Get in touchIf you've built a strong reputation in power, water, cooling, testing, or industrial automation and are thinking about what's next, let's have a conversation — in confidence.
Get in touchBrokers, M&A advisors, and intermediaries with UK lower-middle-market industrial mandates — RN Capital moves quickly and diligences seriously.
Get in touchTell me a little about who you are and what you're looking to discuss. I read every message personally and respond directly.