Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC is buying R.H. Sheppard Co. Inc. from Wabco, a move that it says helps cement parent company Knorr-Bremse’s position as a global supplier of integrated steering and braking systems as a basis for highly automated driving and advanced driver assistance systems.

Sheppard is a supplier of steering technologies for commercial vehicles. Wabco is in the process of being acquired by ZF, which has its own advanced steering offerings.

Closing on the $149.5 million deal is subject to closing conditions and regulatory approvals and is contingent upon the closing of the ZF acquisition of Wabco.

The move follows Knorr-Bremse’s spring 2019 acquisition of the commercial vehicle steering division of Hitachi Automotive Systems in Japan.

“For Bendix and the North American marketplace in particular, this is a strong combination of two market leaders and an ideal addition to our evolving product and solutions portfolio,” said Michael Hawthorne, Bendix president and CEO. “The Sheppard product portfolio will further enable us to better respond to the requirements of North American customers in the different market segments and to offer tailor-made system solutions for the full range North American commercial vehicles.”