Satellite navigation solutions specialist Trimble has acquired privately-held ALK Technologies for an undisclosed amount.
Founded 1979, ALK offers proprietary routing and navigation based solutions for transportation, logistics and mobile workforces….
Satellite navigation solutions specialist Trimble has acquired privately-held ALK Technologies for an undisclosed amount.
Founded 1979, ALK offers proprietary routing and navigation based solutions for transportation, logistics and mobile workforces. Its geo-logistics software utilises GPS navigation technology.
Trimble said that on completion, ALK will become part of its mobile solutions segment, which encompasses its transportation and logistics product portfolio.
Also within this group is TMW Systems, a developer of enterprise software for the transportation and logistics sector that Trimble purchased for US$334m in October 2012.
Both ALK and TMW have had a long term strategic partnership and it is likely that TMW was a key driving force behind the decision to purchase ALK.
Over the past few years, Trimble has made a series of mainly bolt-on acquisitions in recent years in order to rapidly gain scale. Most recently, in November, it announced that it had acquired US-based 5D virtual construction software consultancy Vico Software for an undisclosed amount.
Other acquisitions include the purchase of seismic sensors specialist Refraction Technology in October 2012, logistics payroll software provider Logicway of the Netherlands in September and GEOTrac Systems, a wireless fleet management solutions provider, in July. That purchase was designed to expand on its July 2011 purchase of PeopleNet, a fleet management software specialist. And three months before that deal, Trimble acquired GPS enhancement data via satellite specialist OmniSTAR.
To help fund some of these deals Trimble entered into an amended and restated five-year US$1.4bn credit facility in November 2012. The financing comprises a US$700m revolving credit facility and a US$700m term loan and Trimble stated that proceeds would be used for working capital needs including the financing of potential acquisitions.
