04/18/03
By BRIAN LAWSON
Times Business Writer brianl@htimes.com
Huntsville-based Computer Systems Technology Inc. has been bought by San Diego-based SAIC and will become a group within the 41,000-employee company.
Bobby Bradley, president and CEO of CST, said her company had been approached by Scientific Applications International Corp. last summer.
Terms of the deal, which closed April 11, were not disclosed. Bradley, who helped found CST in 1989, said it fulfills a dream to build a company attractive enough to be acquired by a larger firm. "We feel great," Bradley said Thursday. "It's going to give us the platform for our next level of growth, and our employees will have increased opportunities within a larger company."
CST has 900 employees, including about 120 in Huntsville, Bradley said. The company specializes in information-technology services, primarily to government customers. CST reported $90 million in revenue for its last fiscal year.
CST will become CST Group, within SAIC's Technology Applications Sector. CST's Huntsville headquarters and work force won't change as a result of the deal, Bradley said.
Michael Daniels, an SAIC vice president who manages the Technology Applications Sector, said in a news release that the acquisition of CST gives SAIC the opportunity to expand its markets.
"CST has a proven track record of growth and profitability in the federal marketplace," Daniels said.
The acquisition of CST marks the third time since January a Huntsville government contractor has been bought by a larger player. Mevatec Corp. was purchased by BAE Systems in February for $82 million in cash. SAIC also bought Huntsville-based Quality Research in January. Quality Research had 650 employees, including 322 in Huntsville, and Mevatec had 500 employees, with 300 of those in Huntsville.
