By Light to Acquire Cole Engineering Services, Inc.
MCLEAN, VA, September 20, 2019 – By Light Professional IT Services LLC (“By Light” or “the Company”) today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Cole Engineering Services, Inc. (CESI), an industry-leading, full spectrum (live, virtual, constructive and gaming) training and analysis developer, integrator and services provider. The transaction is subject to the approval of CESI shareholders and normal regulatory approvals, with closing expected early in the fourth quarter of 2019.
CESI develops unique simulation-based systems for simple and complex military missions, and has extensive experience developing interoperable distributed simulation architectures for engineering and training environments. Led by a highly talented and experienced team, with deep institutional knowledge and an extensive infrastructure in the form of laboratories and tools/methodologies, CESI tackles some of the military’s most complex modeling and simulation projects.
“We are excited to welcome Cole Engineering, with its deep engineering and software development capabilities, to the By Light family,” said Bob Donahue Jr., Founder and CEO of By Light. “We expect that the business will continue to experience significant growth given the combination of its strong footprint in the modeling, simulation, and training market with By Light’s comprehensive stable of contract vehicles.”
“Cole Engineering has built its reputation on three simple principles: listen and deliver, provide small company responsiveness and big company professionalism, and build systems that are easy for warriors to use,” said Bryan Cole, Co-Founder and CEO of Cole Engineering, “I am proud that we will join By Light which shares a similar culture, focused on delivery, service and support for the most demanding and critical national missions.”
Upon closing of the transaction, Bryan Cole will be formally elected to the Board of Directors of By Light, continuing to bring his strong expertise to Cole Engineering, as well as to By Light generally.
By Light’s acquisition of Cole Engineering will be the Company’s fourth since it was acquired in 2017 by Sagewind Capital, a private equity firm with extensive experience backing strong management teams in the government and defense sector.
About By Light
By Light Professional IT Services LLC, headquartered in Mclean, VA is an ISO 9001, 20000-1, and 27001 registered and CMMI Level 3 certified systems integrator that provides secure, turn-key systems by incorporating exceptional engineering, project management, telecommunications, and cyber capabilities to safeguard mission success. Founded by industry professionals with extensive knowledge in Defense and government agencies. By Light successfully implements technical solutions that integrate best commercial practices for government, commercial, and international customers. For more information, please visit www.bylight.com.
About Cole Engineering Services, Inc.
Formed in 2004, CESI is an award-winning company that maintains a distinct record of strong performance in developing dynamic engineering programs. CESI implements operational, modeling, simulation and gaming-based technologies that enable Warfighters and First Responders in their services to the nation. Learn more at www.coleengineering.com.
About Sagewind Capital LLC
Sagewind Capital LLC (www.sagewindcapital.com) is a New York-based middle-market private equity firm. The principals of Sagewind have a proven track record of providing capital and financial resources to help promising small and middle market companies achieve success faster while generating long-term equity value. Through its investments, Sagewind Capital is building a portfolio of companies in key sectors that have the potential for organic growth and can serve as platforms for substantial value creation through a buy-and-build strategy of strategic acquisitions.
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