CPI to buy L3Harris radome business

US-based Communications & Power Industries (CPI) has agreed to acquire L3Harris Technologies' Electronic Space Systems Corporation (ESSCO), saying the ground radome manufacturer will complement its airborne and shipboard radome business.

ESSCO makes radomes that protect satellite communications antennas, military and commercial radars, and telemetry systems from strong winds, snow, and other harsh environmental conditions. The radomes range in diameter from 6–200 ft (1.8–61 m).

ESSCO is based in Massachusetts and has about 85 employees. CPI said on 6 September that it expects to close the acquisition before the end of this calendar year . Financial terms were not disclosed.

The announcement came about two months after CPI acquired TMD Technologies, which makes microwave tubes, high-voltage power equipment, and transmitters used in radar, electronic warfare, communications, and other applications. In 2020 CPI acquired General Dynamics' SATCOM Technologies business, which makes large ground station antennas for geostationary satellites.

For L3Harris, the sale is part of a portfolio reshaping process the US defence contractor has been pursuing since it was formed through the merger of L3 Technologies and Harris Corporation in 2019. L3Harris CEO Chris Kubasik said last month that his publicly held company was nearly done with the divestiture spree, having sold nearly 10% of its revenue. Its goal was to shed 8–10%.