Nomad GCS announces merger with defense contractor Kratos

Columbia Falls-based Nomad Global Communications System announced last week it was merging with Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc.

“Nomad GCS, a Kratos Company, will continue operations at its Montana and Alabama locations, maintaining the same customer focus, teams, and leadership. Joining forces with Kratos strengthens the company’s ability to support customers by combining Nomad’s expertise and deep understanding of complex mobile operations missions with Kratos’ scale and long-term backing,” the company said in a release.

Kratos is a publicly-traded defense industry company best known for its defense drones. It also makes jet powered unmanned aerial drone systems, hypersonic vehicles and rocket systems, propulsion systems for drones, missiles, loitering munitions, supersonic systems, space craft and launch systems as well as other defense systems.

Nomad specializes in mobile command centers for both military and civilian applications.

Nomad GCS started in a family barn near Creston about 23 years ago, as friends and partners Shane Ackerly, Clay Binford, Seth Schmautz and brother Will Schmautz decided to make a mobile command center for agencies like the Forest Service, which needed to be able to access the Internet and communicate remotely while fighting forest fires.

The first trailer, which took the team thousands of hours to build, did the job. It also doubled as an Internet hub for tourists in the summer of 2003. The partners set up the trailer near the gift shop in West Glacier so tourists at the time could access their email and surf the web — for a small fee.

The year 2003 would end up being an historic fire year and Nomad immediately went to work for the Forest Service on the Wedge Canyon Fire up the North Fork.

That effort grew into a multi-million dollar company and employs about 200 people at its facility on Highway 2 south of Columbia Falls, making specialty vehicles for federal, state and private companies around the country and the world.

“Nomad has built its reputation on reliability under pressure and delivering when it matters most. This merger allows us to remain true to who we are while giving our customers added confidence through long-term scale, stability, and support. We stay the same forward-thinking, agile Nomad our customers trust, only stronger,” Nomad GCS Senior Vice President, Will Schmautz said in a release.

“Nomad brings a highly respected brand, differentiated capabilities, and a proven track record in mission-critical environments. This investment supports Kratos’ strategy of partnering with trusted teams and amplifying businesses that already perform at a high level,” said Kratos President and CEO, Eric DeMarco in a release.

Nomad will continue its operations in Montana and in Alabama the company said in a release.