Pacific Scientific Acquires Small Arizona Rival

Newport-Beach based Pacific Scientific Co. has acquired a small Arizona maker of explosive charges for $5.7 million.

Unidynamics/Phoenix Inc., a unit of Crane Co., had sales of $13 million last year and is expected to do about the same in 1993.

Unidynamics, based in Goodyear, Ariz., will be combined with a Pacific Scientific unit of roughly the same size called Energy Systems, which makes many of the same products and is also located in Arizona.

Both units, for instance, make controlled explosive charges used by oil exploration companies to open a hole in a drilling pipe to let oil in, by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to blow off bolts holding down a space shuttle just before launch and to release flame-retardant foam from a pressurized container in a tank or airplane.

Pacific Scientific makes motors and controls for factory assembly lines, fire-extinguishing systems for jets and tanks, engine parts for military aircraft and other products.

The company earned $5.4 million on sales of $173 million last year.