December 1, 2010 - Belden will acquire GarrettCom, a provider of advanced industrial networking products and smart grid solutions. The acquisition extends Belden's leadership position as an industrial networking solutions provider by adding a recognized leader in industrial grade switches, routers, converters, serial communications, and security software.GarrettCom's premium hardened networking products complements Belden's existing portfolio of Hirschmann brand high-availability industrial networking solutions and will enable Belden to address the growing needs of customers across a more diverse set of end market applications.
GarrettCom sells its products into power utilities, surveillance and security, transportation, specialty industrial automation, telecommunications, and similar demanding harsh-environment verticals through a network of system integrators, OEMs, and international distributors." Belden's strategic vision is to provide the best industrial networking solutions to our customers regardless of application or environment," said John Stroup, President and Chief Executive Officer of Belden. "GarrettCom provides an excellent platform for Belden to partner with power utilities as they upgrade and automate their transmission and distribution infrastructure.
The addition of GarrettCom's products will complement our existing industrial networking portfolio and strengthen our position as the world's leading provider of complete industrial networking solutions." Belden will fund the purchase price with cash on hand and expects the acquisition to be completed by calendar year-end 2010. Belden expects the business will be break-even on a GAAP basis in fiscal year 2011.
About Belden
St. Louis-based Belden Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets cable, connectivity, and networking products in markets including industrial automation, enterprise, transportation, infrastructure, and consumer electronics. It has approximately 6,900 employees, and provides value for industrial automation, enterprise, education, healthcare, entertainment and broadcast, sound and security, transportation, infrastructure, consumer electronics and other industries. Belden has manufacturing capabilities in North America, Europe, and Asia, and a market presence in nearly every region of the world.
Belden was founded in 1902, and today is a leader with some of the strongest brands in the signal transmission industry.
About GarrettCom
GarrettCom is a leading provider of industrial networking products for specialty and stressed applications with business locations in North America, Europe and India. GarrettCom specializes in mission-critical, customizable, and durable products for extreme conditions. It offers industrial and substation-hardened networking products such as managed or unmanaged switches, multi-protocol routers, Ethernet and serial media converters, terminal servers, and serial communications. GarrettCom also offers software capabilities in the areas of cyber security, physical security, and fault-tolerance for high-availability industrial networking solutions.
The company has diversified sales channels with a premier customer base, including 75% of the top 100 power utilities in North America and top-tier industrial system integrators worldwide.
