OceanSound Partners LP on Wednesday, Oct. 28, said it’s completed a strategic investment in founder-owned defense and space electronics manufacturer Iris Technology Corp.
Irvine, Calif.-based Iris and New York-based OceanSound didn’t disclose the financial terms of the transaction, which will see Iris founder and CEO Ed O’Rourke retain a significant equity stake and continue to lead the company alongside its existing management team.
The deal follows a sale process launched earlier this year. The Deal reported in June that Iris was fielding takeover interest from strategic buyers and private equity firms with investment bank Kroll Securities LLC.
The business was marketed on roughly $14 million in Ebitda and $60 million in revenue, up from $8 million in Ebitda and $35 million in revenue in 2025, with expectations that it could fetch between 12 times and 16 times Ebitda, The Deal reported.
Founded 40 years ago, Iris designs and manufactures radiation-hardened, space-qualified electronics and tactical power systems. Its space portfolio includes cryocooler control electronics, focal plane interface electronics and heater control cards supporting missile warning, missile tracking and electro-optical surveillance payloads.
The company supplies prime defense contractors including BAE Systems plc, General Atomics, Leidos Holdings Inc. (LDOS), Leonardo DRS Inc. (DRS) and Northrop Grumman Corp. (NOC).
Iris also produces tactical military hardware, including radio power adapters, portable power management systems and vehicle-mounted inverters for field communications.
OceanSound said it plans to support Iris in expanding its testing and qualification capabilities, scaling engineering and program management depth, and pursuing add-on acquisitions across adjacent national security space systems while maintaining Iris as an independent, partner-neutral supplier.
Founded in 2019, OceanSound focuses on investing in technology and technology-enabled services companies with up to $750 million of enterprise value that serve government and enterprise end markets.
In March, the company announced the final close of its third fund, OceanSound Partners Fund III, with $3 billion in total capital commitments. Together with related co-investment vehicles, OceanSound raised $3.4 billion of cumulative committed capital in connection with the fund.
OceanSound earlier this month completed a strategic investment in Imsar LLC, a developer and manufacturer of synthetic aperture radar systems and mission software for unmanned and manned aircraft.
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP provided counsel to OceanSound on the Iris investment. Gibson Dunn’s John M. Pollack and Robert Banerjea advised on both the Iris and Inmar transactions, The Deal learned.
Kroll Securities LLC was financial adviser to Iris Technology, which turned to Crowell & Moring LLP for counsel. Bryan Brewer led the Crowell team, which included Ryan Flynn, John McCarthy and Scott Wise, The Deal has learned.
