Ultra Electronics, a Middlesex-based manufacturer of electrical and electromechanical systems, has acquired Australian defence company Avalon Systems for A$16.5 million (£8.1 million) in cash. 

Ultra Electronics, a Middlesex-based manufacturer of electrical and electromechanical systems, has acquired Australian defence company Avalon Systems for A$16.5 million (£8.1 million) in cash.

Adelaide-based Avalon specialises in electronic warfare and works closely with the Australian Defence Force, the national defence agency.  

Douglas Caster, chief executive of Ultra, commented: “Avalon is a high quality business with significant potential for further development in its own right.”

Ultra reported an increase in revenues of 25 per cent to £515.3 million in 2008, and an increase in pre-tax profits of 18 per cent to £72.2 million.