BAE starts 2008 on a roll ...

It may be a quiet period for some but there's no moss growing on BAE. They have recently announced two acquisitions.

Petards Group has sold BAE its U.K. software business, including the Universal Video Management System (UVMS). Petards will continue to provide UVMS in North America through a licensing agreement. Wile this is a relatively small purchase for BAE it may point to a consolidation trend in the industry in light of last year's Bosch purchase of Extreme.

The bigger news on the financial scale ($450 million) is BAE's purchase of Dayton Ohio's MTC Technologies. This move certainly increases BAE's U.S. footprint. Founded in 1984 by Rajesh and Indu Soin, MTC has been involved with: avionics and control system mechanisms for the C-130 and attack helicopters; future soldier equipment integration; intelligence planning; and professional services.

For perspective, here are some BAE facts: 3rd largest global defence company; 6th largest US defence company; 96,000 employees; and annual sales exceed £15 billion.

Sources: Various
Image: BAE

Bosch acquires Extreme

Canadian CCTV and surveillance specialists Extreme are to be purchased by Bosch Security Systems of Stuttgart.

With this acquisition Bosch not only gets some well established technologies but also an increased presence in the U.K., the U.S. and Canada.

The deal is expected to close in February.

Source: The Monitor