By Ashley Willis
MOBILE, Ala. — In an effort to reach more customers in the southeast region, VSC Fire & Security (VSC) has acquired fire sprinkler contractor Fire Protection Specialists (FPS) here. Terms of the deal were not immediately available.
VSC will open its 13th district office in Mobile as a result of the deal. Because FPS only offered fire sprinklers to customers, the new deal allows VSC to provide full-service fire protection to the Mobile area. In the future, the company will also offer low-voltage services, VSC COO Mike Martin tells SSI.
"This acquisition is a great opportunity," he says. "It allows us to expand our service area to serve customers in Alabama, the Florida Panhandle, Mississippi and Louisiana, especially along the Gulf Coast."
Founded in 1958, Ashland, Va.-based VSC provides integrated fire protection, and life-safety and security solutions, as well as inspections of fire alarms, fire detection, fire sprinklers, fire suppression and security systems. With additional offices in Florida, Georgia, Maryland, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington, D.C., VSC serves in a variety of markets. They include: education, health care, hotels, houses of worship, government, transportation and residential. With this latest acquisition, the company can now expand into a new market - casinos.
"A few years back, FPS helped install the original fire protection system for the Beau Rivage Casino & Resort in Biloxi [Miss.]," Martin says. "After Hurricane Katrina, they were called back to the property and helped complete extensive repairs."
Noting that the majority of FPS employees have an average of 18 working years with the company, Martin says that VSC will retain all 20 employees at the Mobile office.
Although the company has no immediate plans to expand, VSC hopes to increase its footprint in the future.
"We're always open to any opportunities that improve and expand our service to our fire protection and life-safety customers throughout the southeast and mid-Atlantic regions," Martin says.
Ashley Willis is associate editor for SECURITY SALES & INTEGRATION. She can be reached at (310) 533-2419.