St. Petersburg manufacturer Compulink sells to private equity portfolio company

Compulink Cable Assemblies Inc., a St. Petersburg company that manufactures cables and harnesses for commercial and military applications, has a new owner.

kSARIA Corp. acquired Compulink in a deal announced Wednesday. Financial terms were not disclosed.

kSARIA, based in Methuen, Massachusetts, produces and supplies mission-critical connectivity solutions for the aerospace and defense end markets. It is a portfolio company of private equity investment firm Behrman Capital.

Compulink was founded in 1984 and has about 300 employees as well as 40,000 square feet of manufacturing space. It has two facilities, one at 1205 Gandy Blvd. N. and a training and administration facility at 9850 16th St. N., according to its website.

Compulink provides design engineering, prototype fabrication, production and testing to original equipment manufacturers nationwide. The company’s products include an array of harness assemblies such as coax, RF, Mil-C-38999 and miniaturized connectors, as well as custom-molded cable assemblies for virtually any application in the military, medical and transportation marketplaces, a news release said.

“Compulink has a 36-year history of manufacturing excellence and providing innovative solutions for our customers. We have extensive industry expertise that has enabled us to forge deep-rooted and invaluable relationships with major OEMs and manufacturers. We are excited to contribute to the success of kSARIA in partnership with the management team and Behrman Capital,” Rob Wilkin, co-founder of Compulink, said in the news release.

Compulink has a “customer-centric business approach” as well as expertise in manufacturing and engineering, said co-founder Steve Shevlin. “This transaction is a unique strategic opportunity to build on our deeply successful foundation and deliver enhanced value to our customers,” Shevlin said.

Compulink has a “formidable presence” in battlefield and ground-based applications, as well as other defense and commercial applications and complements kSARIA’s strength in aerospace and naval solutions, Anthony  Christopher, kSARIA’s president and CEO, said in the news release.

It’s the second acquisition for kSARIA since it was acquired by Behrman Capital. Last year, kSARIA bought Co-Operative Industries Aerospace & Defense in Fort Worth, Texas.

kSARIA has rapidly expanded its platform in the high-reliability optical and connectivity sector, and the acquisition of Compulink accelerates this momentum, Grant Behrman, managing partner of Behrman Capital, said.