Branford Castle has acquired Hoffman Engineering, a provider of night vision and lighting equipment for the aerospace and defense sectors, from Trident Maritime Systems.
Hoffman’s products include night vision test equipment, night vision imaging lighting systems, and specialty LED lighting, primarily used by the U.S. military, aerospace and defense original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and commercial airlines.
The company was founded in 1955 by J. Gordon Hoffman and is today led by CEO Ron Hayward with a headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut.
“Today’s milestone is a testament to the trusted, innovative solutions and customer-focused culture we have worked hard to build,” said Mr. Hayward. “We are thankful for the support of our previous owner, Trident, and look forward to future growth opportunities with our new partners at Branford Castle.”
“We are excited to partner with Ron and the Hoffman team. We see great potential in this market as the aerospace and defense sectors continue to grow, driving demand for advanced, mission-critical products,” said Ceon Francis, a managing director at Branford Castle. “Hoffman’s leadership in the night vision market, combined with its proprietary capabilities, makes it a promising platform for growth.”
The acquisition marks Branford Castle’s sixth platform investment and eleventh acquisition overall for its second fund, which closed in 2021. The five earlier Fund II platforms include Marine Floats, a Washington-based provider of specialty marine contractor services (October 2023); GPT Industries, a Colorado-based manufacturer of pipeline sealing and electrical isolation products (February 2023); Handi Quilter, a Utah-based manufacturer and designer of quilting machines (June 2022); Lafayette Instrument, an Indiana-based maker of polygraph equipment and other scientific instruments (April 2021); and Fibrix Filtration, a Charlotte-based maker of air filtration media products that are used in commercial and industrial HVAC systems (August 2020).
O2 Sponsor Finance and Brookside Capital Partners provided senior and mezzanine debt financing for the transaction. “This transaction was made possible thanks to our long-standing partners, O2 Sponsor Finance and Brookside Capital Partners, whose continued support is highly valued,” said Eric Korsten, a senior managing director at Branford Castle.
Branford Castle invests in companies with enterprise values up to $100 million and EBITDA under $15 million, focusing on sectors like industrials, specialty manufacturing, consumer products, commercial distribution, business services, and logistics. The firm, led by President John S. Castle and Managing Partner David Castle, is headquartered in New York City, with an office in Boca Raton, Florida.
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