The acquisition of ESD will leverage the large construction capabilities of Newport News Shipbuilding for advancements in UUVs. Photo: Huntington Ingalls Industries.
by Scott Kesselman
Huntington Ingalls Industries acquired the Engineering Solutions Division of the Columbia Group, a designer and builder of unmanned underwater vehicles, for an undisclosed sum.
Panama Beach City, Florida-based ESD, previously a stand-alone division of the Columbia Group, has about 30 engineers, analysts, craftsmen and technicians. The company’s clients include the U.S. Navy and military customers around the world.
“ESD’s experience in designing and developing manned and unmanned submersibles is a natural extension of the submarine work we do at Newport News Shipbuilding,” says Matt Mulheron, HII corporate vice president and Newport News Shipbuilding president. “We believe the combination of Newport News and ESD expertise will enable us to compete successfully in the unmanned underwater vehicle market.”
ESD will now operate as Undersea Solutions Group, a subsidiary of HII and will report to Newport News Shipbuilding’s Submarine and Fleet Support division.
“As the Navy moves toward greater employment of unmanned vehicles in both the surface and undersea domains, it makes great strategic sense to bring together a builder of unmanned undersea vehicles and one of the world’s great builders of naval ships and submarines,” says ESD Senior Vice President Ross Lindman. “Together we can support the development of large and very large unmanned undersea vehicles and stay in step with the Navy as unmanned systems take on greater and more complex roles in the undersea battle space.”
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