Overview
- The transaction requires regulatory approvals and is scheduled to close in the second half of 2026.
- Smiths Detection, a maker of airport security scanners and other threat‑detection technologies, generated about 29% of group revenue last year.
- The sale follows the £1.3bn disposal of the Interconnect business to Molex as Smiths narrows its focus to John Crane and Flex‑Tek.
- Smiths plans to return a large portion of the proceeds to investors and is already executing a £1bn share buyback expected to run until July 2026.
- The board opted for a sale rather than a demerger after agreeing terms equating to about 16 times operating profit.