The management buy-out of a historic South Yorkshire engineering business — Qualter Hall & Co — from Austrian group Waagner-Biro has been completed with the backing of Enact Fund II.

Founded in 1860, Barnsley-based Qualter Hall has an international reputation for engineering excellence and employs around 120 people.

The company is a ‘one-stop shop’ for a range of engineering solutions. Its landmark projects include the award-winning Scale Lane Swing Bridge (pictured) on the River Hull, a moving-bascule bridge in Indonesia and fixed bridges in Belize.

Chris Cormack, the partner leading the Enact Fund, joins Qualter Hall’s board, while Wayne Bowser, who had a 40-year career at HSBC, has been appointed chairman.

Qualter Hall’s managing director George Orton said: “The company is renowned for providing a unique service in the field of bespoke turn-key engineering project, both in the UK and world-wide.

“We are pleased to have a supportive partner in Enact, and we look forward to an exciting future together.”

Enact Fund II invests ‘transformational’ capital (up to £5 million) in UK-based SMEs that have a robust business model but are facing capital constraints, strategic challenges or operational issues.