Hexagon acquires Vero Software

Vero Software is a UK-based software company whose brands include Alphacam, Cabinet Vision, Edgecam, Radan, Surfcam, VISI, and WorkNC. (updated turnover figures at 10 am; 21 July 2014). The company has offices in the UK, Germany, Italy, France, Japan, USA, Brazil, Netherlands, China, Korea, Spain and India, supplying products to more than 45 countries through its wholly owned subsidiaries and reseller network. Vero's turnover is €80 million. Sweden-headquartered Hexagon has more than 14 000 employees in over 40 countries and net sales of about €2.4 billion. Its products are used in a broad range of industries, including surveying, power and energy, aerospace and defence, construction, safety and security, automotive and manufacturing. Vero Software was acquired by venture capitalist Battery Ventures (www.battery.com) in 2010. Vero then acquired the Planit group in 2011 (Alphacam, Cabinet Vision, Edgecam brands), roughly tripling the size of the business, with very little product overlap, creating "the largest independent vendor in the market", it was said at the time. Vero previously purchased Camtek (PEPS) in 2006, when Vero was still a PLC. French CADCAM specialist Sescoi was then acquired in January 2013, with this was followed by the acquisition of the Surfcam assets from Surfware Inc, a US-based CADCAM software firm. From Hexagon's side, this acquisition "strengthens Hexagon's software offerings, providing the means to close the gap of making quality data fully actionable by extending the reach of the newly developed MMS (metrology planning software) to include CAM (manufacturing planning software)". Says Hexagon president and CEO Ola Rollén: "Together with its unique suite of manufacturing software solutions, Vero Software has the expertise, knowledge and resources to deliver even higher levels of productivity to our customers. Leveraging our global footprint, the synergies from our combined technologies will advance our strategy, supporting the growing need to integrate all data and processes across the manufacturing lifecycle." Vero Software will be fully consolidated as of August 2014 (closing being subject to regulatory approval) and will, says Hexagon, positively contribute to its earnings.