A free resource for owners of 1–50 person fire protection companies — covering revenue mix, financial benchmarks, sales growth, and what buyers are actually paying in today's market. No fluff. No pitch. Just the information you need.
Not all revenue is created equal. The split between inspection, service, and construction work determines your valuation, your predictability, and your leverage.
This is your foundation. Mandatory by code. Annual or quarterly. Customers don't cancel it — they have to do it. It's the closest thing to guaranteed revenue in the trades.
Reactive revenue triggered by inspection findings or equipment failure. Less predictable than inspection but highly defensible — your existing customers call you first.
High revenue, lumpy timing, and variable margins. Important for growth — but dangerous if it dominates your mix. PE buyers discount project revenue heavily because it doesn't repeat.
Whether you're growing or thinking about an exit, PE buyers and lenders look at one number first. Make sure you understand it — and can defend it.
Disclaimer: This tool provides a rough estimation only. Actual EBITDA and business valuation depend on verified financials, quality of earnings, customer concentration, management depth, market conditions, and many other factors. This calculator is not a formal valuation, financial analysis, or offer to purchase. Always work with a qualified CPA and M&A advisor before making any decisions based on a business valuation.
A multiple is how buyers express the price they're willing to pay relative to your earnings. It's not magic — it's math. A 5× multiple on $700K EBITDA = $3.5M offer. The multiple moves based on size, recurring revenue, management team, and market conditions.
PE companies use EBITDA as the denominator because it normalizes across different capital structures and tax situations. The higher your EBITDA — and the more recurring your revenue — the higher the multiple a buyer will justify.
A $700K EBITDA business in Phoenix and a $700K EBITDA business in Omaha are not worth the same thing. Geography shapes growth runway — and buyers price that in.
Private equity isn't just buying your current earnings — they're buying your future earnings. A business in a high-growth market has more organic tailwind: more buildings going up, more compliance requirements being enforced, more businesses moving in that need inspections on day one. That growth potential gets priced into the multiple.
Conversely, a mature or declining market means a buyer has to fight harder for every new contract. Less construction. Slower population growth. Flatter revenue trajectory. The EBITDA might be identical — but the risk profile is different, and the multiple reflects that.
You can't move your market — but you can understand how it affects your positioning. If you're in a Tier 1 market, make sure buyers know you're capturing the growth. If you're in a Tier 3 market, your story has to be about contract quality, customer retention, and operational efficiency. The multiple is earned either way — it just comes from different angles.
Most contractors only grow when referrals roll in. The fastest-growing ones build a machine. Here's what that machine looks like.
Your website is your best salesperson — it works 24/7, doesn't ask for commissions, and reaches customers who are actively searching. Most contractor sites are embarrassing. Yours doesn't have to be.
The fire protection industry runs on relationships. Trade shows and local associations are where decisions happen over handshakes — before RFPs even get written.
This is the move most contractors never make. A dedicated rep going door-to-door, cold calling, and booking inspection walk-throughs is the single fastest growth lever available to a 10–50 person shop.
If your growth strategy is "we do good work and word gets around" — you are leaving money on the table every single month. The contractors growing at 20–30% per year have a dedicated person or dedicated time block assigned to outbound. They track every lead. They follow up relentlessly. They treat sales like the business function it is.
Every disconnected system costs you margin. Time spent rekeying data is time not spent on jobs. Here's how to think about building a stack that actually flows.
Questions about which software fits your operation, how to evaluate options, or how to build a stack that works together?
Ask a Question →Market trends, owner stories, deal dynamics, and real-world lessons from the fire protection industry. Updated regularly.
Private equity has been consolidating fire protection for a decade. Understanding why they want your business — and how they value it — gives you leverage, whether you're selling or not. Here's what's driving the activity and how to position yourself on the right side of it.
Multi-year inspection contracts with auto-renew and CPI escalators. Most contractors never ask. Most customers would say yes.
One dedicated outbound rep, a basic CRM, and a focused territory strategy. Here's exactly what they did.
A fictional but realistic fire protection company — built to show exactly how these numbers, decisions, and conversations play out for an owner thinking about an exit.
The owner started Example Fire Company in 2011 out of his truck. Today he runs 20 technicians across the DFW market — sprinkler inspection, fire alarm testing, suppression systems, and extinguisher service. He's built something real. But he's 54, his knees hurt, and he's been getting calls from buyers he doesn't know how to evaluate.
The verdict: Example Fire Company's mix is solid. 75% of revenue is recurring or recurring-adjacent (inspection + service). Construction at 25% is manageable and won't spook buyers. This mix supports a strong multiple. Pushing inspection to 50%+ before going to market would pick up meaningful valuation.
Those unsolicited buyer calls are real — but they're fishing expeditions. Buyers who call cold are looking for an uninformed seller. Don't share financials, employee counts, or customer names with anyone until you have advisors in your corner and understand what your business is worth.
Three years of clean, consistent P&Ls are what buyers want to see. If personal expenses have been running through the business, now is the time to document them as legitimate add-backs — not hide them. A good CPA who knows M&A will maximize adjusted EBITDA legally.
Right now, if the owner walks out the door, the business has a problem. Buyers price that risk in heavily. Before going to market, you need a service manager or ops lead who can run day-to-day without you. This single change can move the multiple by half a turn or more.
There are three types of buyers in fire protection right now: PE-backed platforms (looking for add-ons in their geography), strategic acquirers (larger fire companies expanding), and independent sponsors. Each has different motives, timelines, and offer structures. You need to know who you're talking to before you sit down at the table.
Example Fire Company is worth somewhere between $7M and $9.8M based on current market conditions. There's no need to sell today — but preparation needs to start today to maximize that number when the time comes. The difference between a prepared seller and an unprepared one in this market is often $1M–$2M in actual proceeds. That gap is entirely closeable with the right guidance.
If this situation looks anything like yours, you're not alone. Most owners in fire protection have never had a clear picture of what their business is worth or how buyers think about it. That's what this resource is here to help with.
Ask a Question →Whether you're trying to understand your revenue mix, figure out what your business might be worth, or just want to learn more about how the market works — send a question and we'll give you a straight answer.