Wabtec announced a definitive agreement to buy Evident’s Inspection Technologies division (Inspection Technologies), formerly part of the Scientific Solutions Division of Olympus Corporation – a global leader in Non-Destructive Testing, Remote Visual Inspection, and Analytical Instruments solutions for mission-critical assets.
Known for its leading brands and reference-standard technologies, Inspection Technologies brings desirable and complementary technologies to Wabtec’s Digital Intelligence business. This acquisition positions Wabtec for accelerated, profitable growth while reinforcing its commitment to enhancing customer productivity, reliability, and safety.
With a 50-year legacy of innovation and commitment to advance mission-critical applications, Inspection Technologies serves its customer base through a geographically distributed sales force and four engineering and production facilities in North America and Japan with over 1,300 team members.
Inspection Technologies’ leading industry presence and product portfolio will significantly expand Wabtec’s capabilities, adding advanced automated inspection capabilities and driving technology in a space where data acquisition, analytics, and automation are critical. And the integration of Inspection Technologies into Wabtec will utilize Wabtec’s extensive software development expertise, engineering depth and focus on operational excellence to deliver superior solutions to customers.
Based near Boston, MA, Evident’s Inspection Technologies division is expected to achieve approximately $433 million in revenue for calendar year 2024, with EBITDA of approximately $112 million, translating to a margin of 25.9%. And beyond its strong financial performance, Inspection Technologies adds a highly stable and predictable revenue base supported by a recurring revenue stream of approximately 68%.
This deal expands Wabtec’s Digital Intelligence business growth opportunities, effectively doubling the size of its total addressable market (TAM) from approximately $8 billion to $16 billion while enhancing its ability to deliver innovative solutions to a broader range of customers.
Wabtec agreed to acquire Evident’s Inspection Technologies division for $1.78 billion (about $1.68 billion after-tax benefits), subject to customary adjustments. The deal is anticipated to provide immediate shareholder value with a high single-digit revenue growth outlook, accretive Adjusted EBIT margins and accretive return on invested capital (ROIC) over time. Plus, the acquisition is projected to be slightly accretive to Adjusted EPS in the first year of ownership. The purchase price reflects an estimated multiple of 12x projected 2025 EBITDA adjusted for transaction and separation costs, anticipated tax benefits, and projected run-rate cost synergies of $25 million.
The deal is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, with the Company expecting to finalize the purchase of Inspection Technologies by the end of the first half of 2025.
This strategic deal strengthens Wabtec’s portfolio, accelerates its penetration into high-growth industrial markets, and aligns with the Company’s long-term vision of driving innovation, productivity, safety, and reliability, ensuring the integrity of mission-critical assets, infrastructure, and supply chains globally.
KEY QUOTES:
“The addition of Inspection Technologies aligns with our growth strategy to accelerate the innovation of scalable technologies, increase our installed base, expand high margin recurring revenues and continuously drive operational performance.”
- Rafael Santana, President and CEO of Wabtec
“I am incredibly excited to partner with Evident’s talented Inspection Technologies team to further enhance our presence in key markets and applications. Together, we will drive profitable growth, lead in customer value and innovation, and maximize value creation. Inspection Technologies will augment our existing offerings in the rail, mining and industrial sectors while broadening our reach into other high growth, high margin complementary sectors.”
- Nalin Jain, President of Wabtec’s Digital Intelligence Group
“Our deep expertise, shared commitment to innovation and strong customer relationships will unlock significant value. The combination of our two skilled teams and complementary portfolios will accelerate the development of first-class, intelligent monitoring solutions to meet the changing needs of the industries we serve.”
- Karen Smith, Executive Vice President of Evident Inspection Technologies
