E3/Sentinel earlier this month acquired Data Works, Inc., a provider of various software solutions to the intelligence community, a deal that expands its data engineering, advanced analytics and software development capabilities.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. E3/Sentinel, which is based in Northern Virginia, said the companies will combine business operations in the coming year.

Following the acquisition, E3/Sentinel will have more than 650 employees.

Data Works, which is also based in Northern Virginia, said its “core competency is in the technical stack between collection and analysis.” The company develops big data systems to organize and analyze vast amounts of critical data.

“All of our existing government clients and the primes that we support will also benefit from these unique analytics and data capabilities,” Andy Maner, CEO of E3/Sentinel, said in a statement.

E3/Sentinel is a portfolio company of the private equity firm NewSpring Holdings

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KippsDeSanto & Co. served as Data Works’ financial adviser on the deal.

KippsDeSanto said in a statement on Thursday that the acquisition shows several some key trends in the government services area, including continued demand for profitable, high-growth companies serving the intelligence community, buyers seeking companies with “strong past performance, customer relationships, unrestricted contracts, and near-term revenue visibility,” and that private equity firms are increasingly active in mergers and acquisitions, either acquiring new platforms or adding on to existing ones.