Transform-X completes acquisition of Ottawa’s DragonWave

DragonWave joins the Transform-X family with an ‘-X’ of its own

DragonWave
DragonWave

After announcing its intent to acquire DragonWave earlier this month, Arizona-based Transform-X said Wednesday that it has officially closed the deal, ending DragonWave’s 17-year run as an independent and then publicly-traded firm in Ottawa.

Now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Transform-X, the Ottawa-based supplier of packet microwave radio systems will officially be known as DragonWave-X.

The firm will continue to operate out of its Ottawa location, with Transform-X saying in a release that its product portfolio will expand into new “disruptive waveform, antennae and hardware technologies.”

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The Tucson-based firm also indicated that it has rights to patented technologies that can expand bandwidth and improve efficiencies for wired and wireless networks.

“The DragonWave-X acquisition is a crucial part of Transform-X’s strategic goal to acquire and integrate best-in-class 5G+ communications technologies, manufacturers and service companies that will compete and excel in the market for 5G+, small cell densification and RAN solutions to modern data demands,” said Transform-X CEO Dan Hodges in a statement.

Before its acquisition, DragonWave had been developing its own 5G technologies. The firm announced a partnership with Kanata neighbour Mitel on a 5G project in March of last year.

Founded in 2000, DragonWave went through a turbulent few years before the acquisition. Faced with dwindling revenues from its once-lucrative Nokia sales channel, the firm faced delisting from the Nasdaq exchange. It missed a series of deadline extensions before finally being delisted from both the TSX and Nasdaq in August, at which point it was placed in receivership and a buyer was sought.

The firm did find a bright spot this past summer in securing a contract with SmartSky Networks to provide inflight Wi-Fi.

Court documents indicate Transform-X will retain “substantially all” of DragonWave’s roughly 135 employees.

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