Cubic Corp. [CUB] yesterday said it has acquired a business unit of NEK Advanced Securities Group that specializes in the training of U.S. Special Forces, boosting its capabilities in an area that is expected to receive more emphasis amid declines in the defense budget.
The acquisition, which was completed last Friday, complements Cubic’s current training offerings and extends its training business within the Special Forces market.
Cubic paid $52 million in cash for the operating assets of NEK’s Special Programs Group, LLC, which is based in North Carolina and Colorado.
NEK Special Programs Group’s key customers include the U.S. Special Operations Command, Joint Special Operations Command, and Theater Special Operations Command. The company specializes in mission critical training and direct support activities for these customers.
“NEK is one of the few private contractors specializing in mission critical training and direct support activities for the U.S. Special Operations Command, Joint Special Operations Command and Theater Special Operations Command units,” Jay Thomas, senior vice president of Finance and Corporate Development for Cubic, said in a statement.
NEK will operate under Cubic Mission Support Services President Jim Balentine.
“We see many synergies associated with Cubic’s breadth of technologies and service offerings, and expect to further expand our business through these combined resources,” Balentine said in a statement about the NEK purchase. “This acquisition is in line with the Pentagon’s strategic goal of increasing Special Forces training to meet the needs of reduced military spending.”
NEK Special Programs Group’s senior leadership team will remain with the company and NEK Advanced Securities Group’s founders will serve as consultants to Cubic to support the success of their former business unit, a Cubic spokesman told Defense Daily.
NEK’s financial adviser on the deal was Kipps DeSanto & Company. NEK Special Programs has more than 200 skilled and experience operational and technical experts.