By Light acquires Axom for intell footprint

Defense IT services company By Light Professional IT Services has acquired Axom Technologies to gain a new footprint in the intelligence community.

Terms of the transaction were undisclosed and Axom will operate as a subsidiary of By Light, the companies said Tuesday.

Axom is headquartered in Annapolis Junction, Maryland, located in the vicinity of Fort Meade that houses the National Security Agency, U.S. Cyber Command and Defense Information Systems Agency.

The companies see their combination as positioning them better for work in the defense and intelligence agencies that traditionally have high barriers of entry for contractors. Much of the recent government market merger-and-acquisition activity by larger companies this year so far has centered on those markets.

By Light provides hardware and software systems engineering services to design and implement both classified and unclassified government networks, while Axom touts itself as an Internet Service Provider that deploys and maintains secure networks.

Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, By Light is backed by private equity firm Sagewind Capital, which says its portfolio of businesses generate around $600 million in annual revenue. New York City-based Sagewind acquired By Light last year.