APEX Oak Engineering Acquisition - Press Release
APEX Space & Defense Systems Acquires Oak Engineering to Expand U.S. Composite Manufacturing Capacity
Florida-based Oak Engineering and Manufacturing becomes APEX Space & Defense Systems’ fourth business unit, expanding domestic composite and CNC machining capabilities for space, defense, aerospace, and uncrewed platforms.
LOS ANGELES, June 1, 2026 — APEX Space & Defense Systems (APEX), a manufacturer of lightweight composite solutions for the space, defense and mission-critical infrastructure sectors, today announced its acquisition of Oak Engineering and Manufacturing (Oak), a Gainesville, Florida-based composite manufacturer serving the uncrewed systems market, including uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAV) and uncrewed surface vehicles (USV).
Oak produces composite parts and precision CNC-machined components for uncrewed platforms, working with carbon fiber, Kevlar and fiberglass through wet layup, infusion, prepreg, and forming processes. Its team supports defense primes and uncrewed platform developers from design to first article and into full-rate production. Oak holds AS9100D and ISO 9001 certifications, reinforcing its ability to meet stringent quality requirements across leading space and defense programs.
The acquisition of Oak expands APEX’s geographic reach and strengthens APEX’s domestic production capacity for lightweight composite structures used in uncrewed aerial vehicles, uncrewed surface vehicles plus ground and maritime systems, where defense and aerospace customers increasingly require scalable, U.S.-based manufacturing partners with sufficient capacity and geographic reach to support all major manufacturing hubs in the defense industrial base.
“Oak brings deep expertise in composite and CNC manufacturing for uncrewed platforms, along with an engineering and quality team that directly strengthens the APEX New Product Development (NPD) team and increases the capability of what APEX can deliver to our customers,” said Tracy Glende, CEO of APEX. “This acquisition expands our geographic reach and increases our domestic capacity in a market where proximity, speed, precision and reliability are increasingly critical. We look forward to growing our work in the Eastern USA and creating more high-quality manufacturing jobs in Florida.”
The Gainesville facility will continue operating with its leadership team and workforce remaining in place as part of the APEX platform.
APEX's business units now include Advanced Composite Products & Technology (ACPT), All American Racers (AAR), Unitech Composites (UCI) and Oak Engineering and Manufacturing (Oak), forming a four-unit composite manufacturing platform backed by Charger Investment Partners. Across its business units, APEX brings more than 60 years of experience, more than 400 skilled team members and 400,000 square feet of manufacturing facilities, expanding its capacity to deliver lightweight, durable material solutions for space, defense, mission-critical infrastructure and the next generation of uncrewed systems.
For more information about APEX, visit apexsds.com. For media inquiries, email apexsds@griffincg.com.
About Charger Investment Partners: Charger Investment Partners is a private equity firm that specializes in investing in small and mid-sized companies in the industrial, services, and consumer industries. The firm's experienced principals are dedicated to building market-leading companies and employ an operationally focused, flexible capital approach. chargerinv.com
About APEX Space & Defense Systems: APEX Space & Defense Systems delivers world-class, lightweight, durable solutions for the space, defense and mission-critical infrastructure industries. Its work advances complex, essential operations that protect our nation, connect our world and explore our universe. From design and development through final delivery, APEX is driven by an intense focus on innovation and quality enabled by our deep commitment to transparency, integrity and partnership. apexsds.com