Acuity Inc. agreed to acquire Parameter Technologies, a maker of leak detection and monitoring systems for data centers, for $675 million, the Atlanta-based industrial technology company said Monday, extending its push into the infrastructure behind the artificial intelligence buildout.
Parameter, based in Fort Collins, Colo., sells leak detection, environmental monitoring and battery monitoring products under the RLE Technologies and CellWatch brands. It has engineering and service operations in Raleigh, N.C., and a sales and service office in Milton Keynes, England. Once the transaction closes, Parameter will become part of Distech Controls inside the Acuity Intelligent Spaces segment.
Riding the shift to liquid cooling
The rationale is tied to how data centers are changing. As operators move to liquid cooling to handle denser, hotter AI servers, the cost of an undetected leak near expensive equipment rises sharply. Acuity said Parameter’s location-specific detection helps facility operators catch problems earlier and limit downtime.
Parameter expects sales of about $100 million in calendar 2027, which would be growth of more than 30% from the prior year, with EBITDA margins of about 40%, Acuity said. At the purchase price, that implies Acuity is paying under seven times Parameter’s projected 2027 revenue. Acuity expects the acquisition to add to adjusted diluted earnings per share in its fiscal 2027 and to lift both revenue growth and margins at the Intelligent Spaces unit.
The two businesses already overlap. Parameter sells through the same system integrators and distributors as Distech, and Acuity said the combination should deepen Distech’s relationships with makers of cooling equipment.
Debt-funded purchase
Acuity plans to finance the acquisition with $500 million of borrowings, covering the rest with cash on its balance sheet. J.P. Morgan and Bank of America are leading the financing. PJT Partners is Acuity’s financial adviser and Baker McKenzie its outside legal counsel. Lincoln International served as lead financial adviser to Parameter, with Paul Hastings as legal counsel.
Timing
The transaction is subject to customary conditions, including expiration of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino antitrust law. Acuity expects to close in the second quarter of its fiscal 2027, while Parameter described the expected timing as late 2026; Acuity’s fiscal year begins in September, so the two descriptions overlap. Until then the companies will operate independently.
Acuity, which employs about 13,000 people, has two segments, Acuity Brands Lighting and Acuity Intelligent Spaces, and has said it intends to deploy capital aggressively to enter new markets.
