Honeywell to spin off its $18bn automation business
10 February 2025 
Honeywell has announced plans to spin off its automation and aerospace technologies businesses, following an review of its portfolio that it began a year ago. The announcement follows pressure from a major US shareholder, Elliott Management, which has been calling for Honeywell to be broken up, as happened previously to General Electric, Johnson Controls and 3M.
Honeywell’s announcement will result in three publicly listed businesses with distinct strategies and growth drivers. (Honeywell earlier announced that its Advanced Materials division is also being spun off.) The aim is to complete the separations by the second half of 2026.
The automation division is the biggest of the three spin-offs, generating revenues of $18bn in 2024. (Aerospace generated $15bn, and Advanced Materials produced almost $4bn.) The automation portfolio includes drives, sensors, controls, remote I/O, HMIs, industrial software, warehouse automation systems, cybersecurity technologies, smart energy devices, and personal protection equipment.
Honeywell says that following the separation, the automation business will be a “pure play” automation supplier with global scale and a vast installed base. It will be “the global leader of the industrial world’s transition from automation to autonomy, with a comprehensive portfolio of technologies, solutions, and software to drive customers’ productivity”. The business will maintain its global scale, “connecting connect assets, people and processes to power digital transformation” with “a vast installed base to serve a variety of high-growth verticals”.
Honeywell’s chairman and CEO, Vimal Kapur, says that during the review process, it became clear that the strategies for Honeywell’s businesses were diverging. While the automation business needed to focus on AI, digital transformation and energy security, the aerospace operation had to concentrate on capacity expansion and supply chains.
“Building on decades of innovation as its heritage, Honeywell Automation will create the buildings and industrial infrastructure of the future, leveraging process technology, software, and AI-enabled, autonomous solutions to drive the next generation of productivity, sustainability and safety for our customers,” Kapur predicts. “As a standalone company with a simplified operating structure and enhanced focus, Honeywell Automation will be better able to capitalise on the global megatrends underpinning its business – from energy security and sustainability, to digitalisation and artificial intelligence.”
Honeywell says that following their separation, the three business will benefit from:
- a simpler strategic focus;
- greater financial flexibility to pursue organic growth opportunities throughout investment cycles;
- improved ability to tailor capital allocation priorities in alignment with their strategic focus;
- a focused board of directors, and management teams with deep domain expertise; and
- distinct investment profiles that position each company to unlock greater long-term value for shareholders.
“The formation of three independent, industry-leading companies builds on the powerful foundation we have created, positioning each to pursue tailored growth strategies, and unlock significant value for shareholders and customers,” says Kapur. “We have a rich pipeline of strategic bolt-on acquisition targets, and we plan to continue deploying capital to further enhance each business as we prepare them to become leading, independent public companies.”
