Middle market private equity firm

OceanSound Partners

At a glance

Assets under management$8.2B (as of Apr 2026) S6
Latest fundOceanSound Partners Fund III, $3B (Apr 2026) S6
Check size$75M to $350M S6
Deal typesPlatform, Add-on S3
GeographyNorth America S3
SectorsIT Services & MSP, Software & SaaS, Accounting & Professional Services, Industrial & Manufacturing

What OceanSound Partners buys

OceanSound Partners is a New York private equity firm, started in 2019, that takes controlling stakes in technology and tech-enabled services companies whose customers are government agencies, defense and space programs, and tightly regulated businesses such as banks, utilities and hospitals. Its holdings range from managed IT and government IT contractors (Netrix, SMX and DMI) to software for lenders and utilities, defense electronics and radar makers, and engineering and materials testing firms that work on infrastructure projects. Most of its deals involve founder-owned businesses, corporate carve-outs or public companies taken private.

The firm is built for larger deals. Its April 2026 fund announcement says it usually invests $75 million to $350 million in companies worth $150 million to $750 million, and its third fund closed with $3.0 billion of commitments. It wants companies based in North America or with most of their staff there. A smaller company is far more likely to meet OceanSound as an add-on: its platforms have completed dozens of add-ons, including several small engineering and testing firms bought by Certerra and Burns Engineering in 2026.

Recent deals

Announced in the 24 months before October 29, 2026.

DateCompanyTypeSectorSource
Oct 2026PRVN ConsultantsDistrict energy and power engineering firm added to Burns Engineering, expanding its Midwest presenceAdd-onAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
Oct 2026Iris TechnologyIrvine, California maker of radiation-hardened space electronics; the founder keeps a significant stake and stays as CEOPlatformIndustrial & ManufacturingSource
Oct 2026Iron Horse ArchitectsDenver aviation and transit architecture firm; assets bought by GFTAdd-onAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
Oct 2026Universal Testing & Inspection ServicesNew York materials testing and inspection firm added to Certerra; its second-generation owner now leads Certerra's Northeast divisionAdd-onAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
Oct 2026Empower RF SystemsRF systems developer and manufacturer merged into Antenna Research AssociatesAdd-onIndustrial & ManufacturingSource
Oct 2026IMSARUtah developer of compact radar for drones and aircraft; the founder keeps a significant stake and stays as CEOPlatformIndustrial & ManufacturingSource
Sep 2026Terso SolutionsRFID inventory tracking business bought from Promega and added to PAR Excellence SystemsAdd-onSoftware & SaaSSource
Sep 2026DebticateLoan syndication workflow software added to AFSAdd-onSoftware & SaaSSource
Aug 2026Skyrise Engineering and TestingFort Lauderdale geotechnical and materials testing firm; Certerra's fifth acquisition of 2026Add-onAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
Jul 2026Testing EngineersAdded to Certerra, expanding it in Northern CaliforniaAdd-onAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
Jun 2026Paramount Consulting & EngineeringAdded to CerterraAdd-onAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
May 2026Pacific Railway EnterprisesRailroad and transit signal engineering firm added to Burns Engineering on the West CoastAdd-onAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
Apr 2026OceanSound Partners Fund IIIFinal close with $3.0 billion of commitments, or $3.4 billion including co-investment vehiclesFund closeSource
Feb 2026Automated Financial Systems (AFS)Exton, Pennsylvania maker of commercial loan servicing software for banksPlatformSoftware & SaaSSource
Dec 2025Burns EngineeringFamily-led infrastructure engineering firm founded in 1960; the Burns family and managers kept a significant stakePlatformAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
Nov 2025Ricoh USA IT Services businessCarve-out of Ricoh's US managed IT services business, added to Netrix GlobalAdd-onIT Services & MSPSource
Oct 2025Farabaugh Engineering and TestingAdded to CerterraAdd-onAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
Mar 2025Scalar Consulting GroupTransportation engineering firm added to Gannett Fleming TranSystems, now GFTAdd-onAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
Mar 2025Tierra, Inc.Added to CerterraAdd-onAccounting & Professional ServicesSource
Mar 2025TrackCoreMerged into PAR Excellence SystemsAdd-onSoftware & SaaSSource
Feb 2025cBEYONDataAdded to SMXAdd-onIT Services & MSPSource
Nov 2024West Technology Group utilities businessUtility customer messaging business carved out of West's CX360 division and added to Message Broadcast, now ConveyAdd-onSoftware & SaaSSource
Oct 2024Antenna Research AssociatesRF and communications products maker for aerospace and defense; management stayed on as investorsPlatformIndustrial & ManufacturingSource

Portfolio by sector

From the firm's portfolio page S4.

Accounting & Professional Services

  • Burns Engineering
  • Certerra
  • GFT

Industrial & Manufacturing

  • Antenna Research Associates (ARA)
  • IMSAR
  • Iris Technology

IT Services & MSP

  • DMI
  • Netrix Global
  • SMX

Software & SaaS

  • AFS (Automated Financial Systems)
  • Convey
  • Kinective
  • Lynx Software Technologies
  • PAR Excellence Systems

Greymont’s take

How OceanSound Partners fits a seller

OceanSound suits owners of IT services, engineering, testing and inspection, specialized software or defense technology businesses whose clients are public agencies or regulated industries. A company below the firm's platform size will usually sell to one of its portfolio companies. By August 2026 Certerra said it had closed five acquisitions that year, and when it bought Universal Testing & Inspection in October, the second-generation owner stayed on to run Certerra's New York and New Jersey business.

For larger founder-led companies, OceanSound often leaves the founder with a real stake: the Burns family at Burns Engineering and the founders of IMSAR and Iris Technology all kept significant ownership and stayed in charge. Owners should ask whether they would join as an add-on or become a new platform, what role they would hold after closing, and how long OceanSound expects to own the business before its next sale.

Questions owners ask

How large a company does OceanSound invest in?

Its April 2026 Fund III announcement says it typically invests $75 million to $350 million for a controlling stake in companies with enterprise values of $150 million to $750 million. Smaller businesses usually come in as add-ons to an existing platform.

Does OceanSound buy IT services companies?

Yes. Its current holdings include Netrix Global, a managed IT and cybersecurity services provider that bought Ricoh USA's US managed IT services business in November 2025, and SMX, a cloud and IT solutions contractor for government clients that acquired cBEYONData in February 2025.

Can a founder keep a stake after OceanSound invests?

Often, yes. When OceanSound backed Burns Engineering in December 2025, and IMSAR and Iris Technology in October 2026, the founders or family owners kept a significant ownership interest and continued to lead their companies.

How much capital does OceanSound manage?

The firm reported more than $8.2 billion of regulatory assets under management in April 2026, when it closed Fund III with $3.0 billion of commitments. It earlier raised $1.49 billion for Fund II in 2024 and $780 million for Fund I in 2022.

Sources

  1. S1OceanSound Partners home page Accessed October 29, 2026
  2. S2OceanSound Partners: About Accessed October 29, 2026
  3. S3OceanSound Partners: Where We Invest (investment criteria) Accessed October 29, 2026
  4. S4OceanSound Partners: Portfolio Accessed October 29, 2026
  5. S5OceanSound Partners: Press Releases Accessed October 29, 2026
  6. S6OceanSound Partners Closes $3.4 Billion in Connection with Fund III (April 1, 2026) Accessed October 29, 2026
  7. S7Burns Engineering Announces Investment from OceanSound Partners (December 2, 2025) Accessed October 29, 2026
  8. S8Certerra Expands Northeast Presence Through Acquisition of Universal Testing & Inspection Services (October 8, 2026) Accessed October 29, 2026
  9. S9IMSAR Announces Strategic Investment from OceanSound Partners (October 5, 2026) Accessed October 29, 2026
  10. S10Iris Technology Announces Strategic Investment from OceanSound Partners (October 28, 2026) Accessed October 29, 2026
  11. S11Netrix Acquires U.S. Managed IT Services from Ricoh USA, Inc. (November 5, 2025) Accessed October 29, 2026
  12. S12Certerra Expands Southeast Presence with Acquisition of Skyrise Engineering and Testing (August 20, 2026) Accessed October 29, 2026

Compiled by Greymont Advisors from public sources, including the firm’s own website and press releases. Greymont is not affiliated with OceanSound Partners. Figures are as reported on the dates shown and may have changed. Request a correction

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