Calian Group has acquired a Quebec-based engineering firm that specializes in complex military systems in a deal that strengthens the Ottawa firm’s ties to key customers in the defence and security space. Calian said Thursday it has purchased InField Scientific, which works with major defence contractors to assess electrical equipment on ships and other military […]
Already an Insider? Log in
Get Instant Access to This Article
Become an Ottawa Business Journal Insider and get immediate access to all of our Insider-only content and much more.
- Critical Ottawa business news and analysis updated daily.
- Immediate access to all Insider-only content on our website.
- 4 issues per year of the Ottawa Business Journal magazine.
- Special bonus issues like the Ottawa Book of Lists.
- Discounted registration for OBJ’s in-person events.
Calian Group has acquired a Quebec-based engineering firm that specializes in complex military systems in a deal that strengthens the Ottawa firm’s ties to key customers in the defence and security space.
Calian said Thursday it has purchased InField Scientific, which works with major defence contractors to assess electrical equipment on ships and other military assets. Calian did not disclose financial details, but the firm’s chief financial and development officer, Patrick Houston, told Techopia the purchase price was in the “single-digit millions.”
Headquartered in the Montreal area, Infield has about 10 employees and generates annual revenues in the single-digit millions. Houston noted the company is involved in some of Canada’s biggest defence procurement projects and has expertise that few other firms can match, giving it significant upside as the Canadian government prepares to ramp up defence spending in the next few years.
“It’s a very specialized science,” Houston said. “You don’t have a lot of (companies) that can do this.”
One of the firm's major partners is global defence and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin. Infield is currently helping ensure that communications equipment, weapons systems and other key electronic components on the new River-class destroyers being built for the Royal Canadian Navy by Lockheed Martin are properly designed and implemented.
Defence customers already generate a bigger chunk of Calian’s revenues than any other business segment. Houston says adding a company that has longstanding relationships with partners like Lockheed Martin and the Canadian Armed Forces will help the Kanata-based firm cement its status as one of the leading providers of services and technologies for the Canadian military.
“We’re hoping to kind of parlay that into a bigger relationship with the navy and Lougheed,” he said. “The more you do in these times with defence is good. Fifty per cent of what we do today is defence, and the Canadian Armed Forces are our biggest customer. This (transaction) fits right in there.”
Calian’s 16th acquisition since 2020 comes less than two weeks after the company launched Calian Ventures, a new initiative aimed at helping small and medium-sized businesses serving Canada’s defence sector scale up and sell their inventions to the world.
Houston, a key author of Calian’s M&A playbook, says acquisitions will constitute a major part of the company’s efforts to bolster the homegrown defence sector.
“I think you’re going to see a lot of this in the next year, where we’re doing partnerships, buying smaller businesses, putting that capability in Calian,” he said. “I think this is probably the first of a few more (acquisitions) coming. I think it shows our commitment to Canada, our push on defence and our ability to be one of the larger Canadian defence players.”
The deal comes as more and more defence companies are jostling for position in a Canadian market that’s expected to expand dramatically over the next few years.
Earlier this week, for example, SEA Canada, a subsidiary of U.K.-based defence and maritime systems company SEA, opened a new facility in Kanata that will produce torpedo launcher systems and decoy launchers for the next-generation River-class destroyers that will replace the Royal Canadian Navy’s aging fleet of Iroquois- and Halifax-class warships beginning in the early 2030s. The massive project to replenish Canada’s destroyer fleet is expected to last until about 2050.
Infield is working on those same vessels, but Houston is hoping its dealings with the navy and partners like Lockheed Martin don’t end there.
In addition to buying new warships, the navy is also seeking to obtain a new fleet of continental defence corvettes by the mid-2030s – ships that will be smaller than frigates and replace the current Kingston-class coastal defence vessels that are nearing the end of their lifespans. That procurement project is expected to follow the federal government’s search for a new fleet of submarines.
All those upcoming projects mean more potential work for companies like Infield – another reason acquiring the firm was such an attractive proposition for Calian.
“I think there’s going to be lots of naval activity, and we’re trying to position ourselves to get as much work there as we can,” Houston said.
“I think there’s an opportunity for Calian to really plug a lot of holes there for some of these foreign OEMs, which would be great, because I do think we need to build some of this capability here in Canada. It creates great jobs, and it gives us more sovereignty here rather than just being completely reliant on the large foreign guys.”
Houston said that while Infield boasts “good margins and a really strong backlog,” it can’t rest on its laurels as it competes for future defence contracts from the Canadian government.
“Now our challenge is to keep up the great work they’re doing and then get on the next program – get on the icebreakers (now being built for the Canadian Coast Guard), get on some of these other programs and really kind of scale this up over the years.”
Calian shares were up $1.39 to $52.35 in mid-afternoon trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
