Honeywell has acquired privately held Rocky Research, a Boulder City, Nevada-based technology leader specializing in thermal, energy and power management solutions. This acquisition expands Honeywell’s existing, broad portfolio, which includes power generation systems, energy storage, and power and thermal management systems. It also combines Rocky Research’s proven research and development capabilities with Honeywell’s worldwide reach and engineering integration, test and production expertise.
The acquisition of Rocky Research positions Honeywell with an advanced capability in the fast-growing power and thermal management market. The combined, differentiated capabilities of Rocky Research and Honeywell will help reduce the size, weight, power and cost of thermal and power management and hardware systems. Rocky Research will be integrated into Honeywell’s Aerospace business.
“Rocky Research is an ideal addition to Honeywell’s expanding product portfolio. Effective cooling systems optimized for size, weight and power are critical to meet the growing need for aircraft electrification, unmanned and autonomous aerial vehicles, and related systems,” said Mike Madsen, president and chief executive officer of Honeywell Aerospace. “Rocky Research will augment Honeywell’s existing technology capabilities in these areas.”
Rocky Research’s sole owner, President and CEO, Uwe Rockenfeller, will join Honeywell and continue to serve as president, Rocky Research, which will be held as a wholly owned subsidiary focused on power and thermal research and development. Rocky Research’s current location in Huntsville, Alabama, will remain a key integration and testing site, and its headquarters in Boulder City will serve as a research and development center.
“Honeywell and Rocky Research are a highly complementary match, fortifying Rocky Research’s technology with Honeywell’s world-class supply chain and manufacturing resources to meet growing demands for this technology,” Rockenfeller said. “As a combined business, we will be able to provide our customer base with a full range of solutions, from prototyping and demonstration to complete product delivery and support.”
Rocky Research focuses on thermal management applications complementary to Honeywell Aerospace’s existing technologies. Rocky Research has won several major contracts supporting various U.S. Department of Defense projects, including providing power and thermal management systems to one of the U.S. Army’s highest priority programs. Beyond defense applications, Rocky Research also addresses emerging Homeland Security needs, including the protection of critical infrastructure like airports, power plants and stadiums.
Honeywell’s Aerospace portfolio includes an array of related solutions, including power generation systems that provide up to 1 megawatt of continuous output, state-of-the-art cooling systems, and technologies for pointing and stabilization.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, and there is no change to Honeywell’s third-quarter outlook as a result of the acquisition.