Expanded manufacturing and service footprint enhances FMD’s worldwide customer support network

Fairbanks Morse Defense, a portfolio company of Arcline Investment Management, has acquired Vestdavit, a leading supplier of davits and advanced handling systems based in Bergen, Norway. The acquisition strengthens FMD’s position as a global provider of mission-critical maritime equipment and enhances its ability to deliver fully integrated product and service capabilities to naval and commercial operators worldwide.

Fairbanks Morse Defense purchased all equity of Vestdavit from its four owners for an undisclosed amount.

“Fairbanks Morse Defense and Vestdavit share a longstanding commitment to providing mission-critical equipment for navies that are protecting the freedom of the seas,” said Steve Pykett, CEO of Fairbanks Morse Defense. “Vestdavit’s advanced handling technologies complement our existing portfolio while broadening our OEM and service capabilities. In turn, Vestdavit will benefit from our worldwide support infrastructure, ensuring customers receive the highest standard of service wherever they operate.”

Vestdavit brings more than four decades of expertise and a track record of over 2,200 davit systems delivered to naval and offshore operators. The company pioneered dual-point lifting systems, automated boat-handling technologies, and advanced launch and recovery systems (LARS) for unmanned surface and sub-surface vessels. These innovations are critical for the U.S. Navy’s planned Large Unmanned Surface Vessels (LUSVs) and the Large Unmanned Undersea Vessels (UUVs).

Mutual customers include the U.S. Navy, UK Royal Navy, and the Canadian Coast Guard. Through Vestdavit, Fairbanks Morse Defense will also expand its presence among NATO fleets such as the French Navy, the Italian Navy, the German Navy, the Royal Netherlands and Belgian Navies, the Finnish Navy, and the Norwegian Navy.

Fairbanks Morse Defense will also add Vestdavit’s manufacturing facility in Poland and service centers in the Netherlands and Seattle, Washington, to its operational network. Vestdavit customers will gain access to FMD’s full portfolio of engines, motors, valves, ventilation systems, water purification and treatment systems, and other OEM technologies.

“Companies evolve over time, and having seen tremendous growth in recent years, we believe the time is right for Vestdavit to become part of a larger system that will strengthen our future development,” said Rolf Andreas Wigand, CEO of Vestdavit. “As part of Fairbanks Morse Defense, we are well-positioned to expand geographically within the global naval segment, strengthen our aftersales capabilities, and access the resources we need to pursue long-term growth.”

Vestdavit’s offering now joins that of Welin Lambie, the UK-based davit manufacturer acquired by Fairbanks Morse Defense in 2023. Together, the two companies will provide customers with a comprehensive range of davit solutions.

This transaction follows Fairbanks Morse Defense’s acquisition of the Rolls-Royce Naval Propulsors business earlier this year, which restored the Bird-Johnson brand to propellers manufactured in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and added waterjets produced in Walpole, Massachusetts.

Source: BUSINESS WIRE