Britain’s Avon Rubber plc on Thursday said it has completed its $91 million acquisition of 3M’s [MMM] advanced ballistic protection business, including the Ceradyne brand, positioning it in the U.S. market.
The deal, which includes a $25 million earnout provision based on the outcome of pending bids, was first announced last August.
3M’s ballistic protection business is part of the former Ceradyne Inc. that it acquired in 2012 for $860 million. The business has about 280 employees and had $85.4 million in sales in 2018, with 90 percent of revenue coming from the U.S. Defense Department.
Most of the sales, 58 percent, are from advanced combat helmets, with the body armor business accounting for 33 percent of revenue, and flat armor, which is used to protect underneath seats and key systems of rotary and fixed-wing aircraft, 9 percent.
Avon Rubber expects to leverage its international sales infrastructure to increase worldwide sales of the Ceradyne brand to additional military and law enforcement customers. The company also plans to integrate its chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear respiratory protection systems with the advanced combat helmets, which already feature integrated communications.
3M said the transaction is neutral to its per share earnings.