Manufacturing conglomerate Honeywell is set to deepen its aerospace expertise and operations through a major acquisition.

The company announced June 20 that it is set to acquire defense technologies supplier CAES Systems Holdings from private equity firm Advent International for about $1.9 billion in a deal that represents 14x estimated 2024 EBITDA.

Arlington, VA-based CAES — formerly known as Cogham Advanced Electronic Solutions — has 13 facilities in North America, including highly automated plants with fully automated test and tuning processes.

A Honeywell news release notes that the deal will add about 2,200 employees to its headcount, including a “deep bench” of radio-frequency engineering talent.

“This acquisition further positions Honeywell at the forefront of the defense industry’s most dynamic sectors and sets the tempo for continued growth across our aerospace business,” said Vimal Kapur, Chairman and CEO of Honeywell. “With the integration of CAES’ solutions and capabilities, we will fortify our existing defense offerings, while also expanding our capabilities in pivotal areas like RF, radar and sensing technologies, to ensure a market-leading position in areas that are critical for global security.”

Honeywell detailed that adding CAES will enhance its defense tech solutions across land, sea, air and space, including new electromagnetic defense solutions for end-to-end RF signal management. The company expects that CAES’ resources will grow Honeywell’s established production and upgrade positions on critical platforms that include F-35, EA-18G, AMRAAM and GMLRS, while introducing new offerings on platforms such as Navy Radar (SPY-6) and UAS and C-UAS technologies.

“The combination of our talented teams will diversify and deepen our expertise and specialized capabilities that enable us to scale current offerings and innovate new ones across critical military platforms,” added Honeywell Aerospace Technologies President and CEO Jim Currier. “CAES’ trusted position with top U.S. defense customers strengthens our existing relationships as we shape the future of the defense industry together.”