VSS Completes New Investment in Barrier Companies

Transaction Positions Comprehensive Fire and Life Safety and Containment Services Provider for Accelerated Growth and Expansion into Attractive New End Markets

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--VSS Capital Partners (“VSS”), a private investment firm investing in the business services, healthcare, education and information industries, today announced that it has completed a new platform investment in Barrier Companies (“Barrier” or “the Company”), a nationwide fire and life safety (“FLS”) and containment services provider specializing in preventing the spread of fire, smoke, water and infection in buildings. Barrier’s management team invested alongside VSS and Lincolnshire Management in the Company. Financial terms of the private investment were not disclosed.

Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas, Barrier operates two divisions: Compliance Services, which provides essential inspection and repair of fire and smoke doors, dampers, barriers and complementary services to hospitals and other healthcare facilities; and New Build Services, which provides planning, budgeting, consulting and installation of thermal and moisture protection with a focus on data centers, education and commercial facilities.

“Barrier’s services are poised to meet a pent-up demand from hospitals and healthcare facilities across the nation that postponed their routine FLS inspections and repairs during the pandemic,” said Jeffrey Stevenson, Managing Partner of VSS.

Barrier’s services – ranging from inspections, repairs, assessments, installation, planning and code compliance support – are critical for hospitals to remain in compliance and maintain funding from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”), which continues to make their codes and standards more stringent.

“We believe there is a considerable backlog of FLS inspections and repair services that will need to be completed this year by hospitals and healthcare facilities to remain compliant with CMS,” said Jaye Sieland, a Partner at Barrier Companies, adding, "We’re excited to partner with VSS and Lincolnshire as the Coronavirus vaccine is widely distributed and allows us to put our ambitious growth plans into action. Our valued clients will benefit from our new partnership as we continue to serve as their trusted FLS and Compliance Services partner.”

Barrier employs over 150 professionals from four regional offices spread between Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska and Texas.

“We expect many hospitals to restart this critical work in 2021 and Barrier is well positioned to benefit due to their successful track record, and to perform these crucial FLS and containment services at scale,” said Patrick Turner, Managing Director of VSS.

The market for building fire and life safety compliance services is expected to continue growing, presenting additional organic and consolidation opportunities for Barrier. The Company believes the total addressable market for compliance-related services is $26 billion in size, with healthcare totaling $13 billion.

About VSS
VSS Capital Partners (“VSS”), a private investment firm, invests in the business services, healthcare, education and information industries. Headquartered in New York, VSS provides capital for growth financing, recapitalizations, strategic acquisitions, and buyouts to lower middle market companies and management teams with the goal of building companies organically as well as through focused add-on acquisition programs. VSS makes privately-negotiated investments across the capital structure and invests in situations requiring control or non-control equity, mezzanine securities, and structured equity securities. VSS has over three decades of experience, made investments in 88 portfolio companies, with over 350 add-on acquisitions, and manages $3.5 billion in aggregate committed capital across 7 funds. For more information, please visit: www.vss.com.

About Barrier Companies
Barrier Companies (“Barrier”) is a fire and life safety ("FLS") and containment services provider specializing in preventing the spread of fire, smoke, sound, water and infection in buildings. Founded in 2008, Barrier is comprised of two divisions: Compliance Services, which provides inspection and repair of fire and smoke doors/dampers/barriers and other complementary services with an emphasis on hospitals and other healthcare facilities; and New Build Services, which provides planning, budgeting, consulting, and installation of thermal and moisture protection for non-residential new builds with an emphasis on high-value building types. Barrier’s field technicians perform FLS and compliance services from regional offices around the country. For more information, please visit: www.barriercompanies.com.