Honeywell to rebrand turbo unit upon completion of spinoff

Engineering services provider Honeywell International Inc. is rebranding its automotive turbocharger unit as Garrett -- Advancing Motion once the previously announced spinoff is completed, the company said Thursday.

The New Jersey conglomerate announced its plans to spin Honeywell Transportation Systems, its turbo-heavy business, into a publicly listed company in October. The company expects the spinoff to close before the end of the third quarter, and it will employ 6,500 people and generate annual revenue of about $3 billion.

The reorganization is expected to simplify Honeywell's widening portfolio and boost growth as well as allow it to make acquisitions as a stand-alone automotive company, Honeywell CEO Darius Adamczyk said in October.

The name change allows the company to acknowledge its ties to entrepreneur and engineer Cliff Garrett's project development of a turbocharger for a Caterpillar D9 crawler tractor that launched in 1954, Honeywell said Thursday. Honeywell Transportation Systems also has been using the name to brand its current portfolio of aftermarket replacement and performance upgrade turbochargers for gasoline and diesel passenger and commercial vehicles, the company said.

"Advancing Motion" will be used to further emphasize the broader portfolio of products the spinoff aims to offer.

"We believe the next generation of vehicles will require a complementary mix of high-performance technologies to meet more stringent global environmental standards and demands for safer and more reliable electrified powertrains and connected cars," Honeywell Transportation Systems CEO Olivier Rabiller said in a statement.

The company also plans to spin off its Honeywell Homes product portfolio and ADI global distribution business into one publicly traded company separate from the transportation systems business.

Honeywell Transportation Systems was one of 30 automotive suppliers that was named a finalist for the 2017 Automotive News PACE Awards, for its variable nozzle turbocharger for gasoline engines.