Transactions
July 8 2018
KippsDeSanto & Co. Advises Germane Systems LC on its Sale to Mercury Systems
KippsDeSanto & Co. is pleased to announce the sale of our client, Germane Systems LC (“Germane” or the “Company”), to Mercury Systems, Inc. (“Mercury”). Germane is an industry-leading designer, developer, and manufacturer of rugged servers, computers, and storage systems for command, control, and information (“C2I”) applications for critical U.S. and international defense programs and platforms, as well as commercial aerospace and industrial markets.
Based in Chantilly, Virginia and founded in 1997, Germane has grown to offer world-class design and manufacturing capabilities, with thousands of products deployed to customers around the globe. Germane works closely with its customers to reach the optimal balance between competing imperatives for commercial-off-the-shelf (“COTS”) and highly customizable rugged computer solutions. Germane’s products are designed to provide enhanced reliability and availability demanded by mission-critical applications in harsh environments. Since inception, Germane has deployed tens of thousands of units across multiple domains and industries, serving key industry clients in the aerospace and defense sectors. Germane has had an entrenched position on the technology insertion (“TI”) program for the naval subsurface fleet for over a decade and is also a supplier to a number of airborne platforms.
The acquisition of Germane, coupled with Mercury’s acquisition of Themis Computer in February 2018, creates a $100+ million C2I rugged server business for Mercury that will enhance its market penetration in the broader command, control, communications, computers, and intelligence (“C4I”) market and provide additional capabilities for its customers. The combination with Themis also provides Mercury with key positions across air, land, and sea (surface and subsurface) defense platforms – through Themis’ naval surface fleet footprint and army platforms (WIN-T / JLTV) and Germane’s footprint on the naval subsurface fleet and airborne platforms.
We believe this transaction demonstrates several key trends in the aerospace and defense M&A environment:
• Strategic buyers seek companies that provide scale and represent significant opportunity for growth through complementary market positioning
• Acquisition targets with embedded positions on hard-to-penetrate, enduring aerospace and defense platforms achieve outsized valuations
• Proprietary C4I solutions are high-priority interest areas in the aerospace and defense market
LEAD INVESTMENT BANKERS
Kevin P. DeSanto
Michael J. Misantone
KippsDeSanto & Co. is pleased to announce the sale of our client, Germane Systems LC (“Germane” or the “Company”), to Mercury Systems, Inc. (“Mercury”). Germane is an industry-leading designer, developer, and manufacturer of rugged servers, computers, and storage systems for command, control, and information (“C2I”) applications for critical U.S. and international defense programs and platforms, as well as commercial aerospace and industrial markets.
Based in Chantilly, Virginia and founded in 1997, Germane has grown to offer world-class design and manufacturing capabilities, with thousands of products deployed to customers around the globe. Germane works closely with its customers to reach the optimal balance between competing imperatives for commercial-off-the-shelf (“COTS”) and highly customizable rugged computer solutions. Germane’s products are designed to provide enhanced reliability and availability demanded by mission-critical applications in harsh environments. Since inception, Germane has deployed tens of thousands of units across multiple domains and industries, serving key industry clients in the aerospace and defense sectors. Germane has had an entrenched position on the technology insertion (“TI”) program for the naval subsurface fleet for over a decade and is also a supplier to a number of airborne platforms.
The acquisition of Germane, coupled with Mercury’s acquisition of Themis Computer in February 2018, creates a $100+ million C2I rugged server business for Mercury that will enhance its market penetration in the broader command, control, communications, computers, and intelligence (“C4I”) market and provide additional capabilities for its customers. The combination with Themis also provides Mercury with key positions across air, land, and sea (surface and subsurface) defense platforms – through Themis’ naval surface fleet footprint and army platforms (WIN-T / JLTV) and Germane’s footprint on the naval subsurface fleet and airborne platforms.
We believe this transaction demonstrates several key trends in the aerospace and defense M&A environment:
• Strategic buyers seek companies that provide scale and represent significant opportunity for growth through complementary market positioning
• Acquisition targets with embedded positions on hard-to-penetrate, enduring aerospace and defense platforms achieve outsized valuations
• Proprietary C4I solutions are high-priority interest areas in the aerospace and defense market
LEAD INVESTMENT BANKERS
Kevin P. DeSanto
Michael J. Misantone
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