Machine vision benfits from acquisition.

Stemmer Imaging is systematically continuing on its international growth trajectory. To this end, the Group has today implemented an essential strategic plan of its expansion strategy with the agreement to acquire the Spanish company Infaimon S.L., a provider of software and hardware for machine vision and robotics.

“With the acquisition of Infaimon, we are now represented in almost all major European markets. Infaimon meets our requirements for acquisitions in the best possible way. We will immediately broaden our sales network, expand our product and service range with innovative technologies, and gain a high-margin company. The Infaimon locations in Brazil and Mexico will give us opportunities to advance into other regions such as the USA in the future,” says Arne Dehn, Stemmer CEO.

Under the agreement, Stemmer will pay a sum in the low tens of millions of euros for the acquisition of all shares in the group. Their Management Board expects the acquisition to result in an additional revenue contribution of around €18 million and an EBITDA contribution of around €3 million in the 2019/2020 financial year. Subject to approval by the antitrust authorities, consolidation is planned starting on the 1st July 2019.

Headquartered in Barcelona with subsidiaries in Portugal, Mexico and Brazil, Infaimon is a leading provider of machine vision and image recognition processes and their application in sought-after subsystems. In particular, the company has many years of expertise in bin picking applications. These subsystems play a key role in Industry 4.0 and smart factories and are used in the automation of production and logistics processes, among other areas. For example, industrial robots are used here to pick up a preprocessed blank from a production line and place it at the next machining point for further processing.

"We are delighted that the transaction has been successfully finalised and that we are now part of a larger and even more internationalised group. This will enable us to leverage the great potential for bin picking applications in the European market in a timely and efficient manner," says Salvador Giro, CEO of Infaimon S.L.

@stemmerimaging #PAuto

New chief for gas analysis manufactureer in Americas.

Luca Marinelli has been appointed as General Manager for Servomex – Americas, based in Houston (TX USA)

Luca Marinelli

“Luca brings more than twenty years of technical sales and worldwide management experience to the position, most recently as Servomex General Manager for Europe, Middle East, Africa and India (EMEA&I)," said Chuck Hurley, President at Servomex. "His extensive national and international experience and proven track record managing teams, negotiating contracts, collaborating on the design and launch of new products, whilst working with customers, OEMs and Channel Partners already includes the US, Canada and Latin America. This vast knowledge of both the industry and the GM role means he is well placed to take Servomex’s Americas business forward.”

Originally from Milan (I), Luca spent 20 years in the United States where he graduated before working with US corporations, including thirteen years with Honeywell Analytics where he emerged as Director of World Wide Sales (High Tech) and latterly as Vice President of Sales. As well as being fluent in Italian and English, Luca has a strong knowledge of Spanish and French.

Luca joined Servomex in 2009 as General Manager for EMEA&I based in The Netherlands heading the commercial operation and Mumbai manufacturing site. His remit included the successful reorganization of the Sales, Service and Customer Service teams, introduction of regions and realignment of the European Business Center to support them.

Luca said: “The Americas continues to be a very important region for us and one we have invested in with our integrated site in Houston. I look forward to working with the established customers and Channel Partners to ensure they have the best possible experience of Servomex, from consultation to sales, delivery, implementation and service. It is good to be back in the United States.”

Luca succeeds Martin Cox, who returns to Servomex in Britain with global responsibility for business development as Market Sector Manager – Sensing Technologies.

Integrators and distributors recognised!

Matrikon International celebrated the success of its key distributors in the Americas at the annual Channel Partner of the Year awards ceremony earlier this month.  The awards ceremony, part of Matrikon‘s Distribution Channel Partner Conference held in San Antonio (TX USA), recognizes customer service, innovation and excellence among companies supplying and integrating Matrikon solutions in the Americas.

The top honors were given to ISS Connectivity and DUX Diligens.  ISS Connectivity, headquartered in Bothell, (WA USA) received the award for Americas 2013 Channel Partner of the Year. DUX Diligens, headquartered in Mexico City, received the award for Americas 2013 System Integrator of the Year.

“I am very pleased to see ISS Connectivity in North America receive the MatrikonOPC Americas Distributor of the year award and for DUX in Mexico to receive our Americas System Integrator of the year award.” said Jeff Gould, general manager of MatrikonOPC. “Both ISS and DUX exemplify MatrikonOPC’s channel network. With their high degree of competence in OPC technology and our products, they consistently provide the right guidance, implementation expertise, and continued support. It is very exciting to see that we are able to extend our best practices through to our channels in a standardize manner that allows our customers to benefit from this locally.”

Acquisition to broaden software portfolio!

Mincom to be acquired by ABB

ABB is acquiring the Australian company, Mincom, from Francisco Partners, a private equity group that invests in technology businesses, for an undisclosed sum. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.

Mincom brings expertise and experience in a range of industries, and a comprehensive set of solutions for applications such as EAM, mining operations and mobile workforce management. Mincom has nearly 1,000 employees and annual revenues of approximately $200 million. With a distribution network in 19 countries, the company is a leading software player in the Asia-Pacific and Latin America regions, with customers including 17 of the top 20 global mining groups, as well as businesses in the energy sector, defense and other asset-intensive industries.

“The acquisition of Mincom is part of our strategy to continuously broaden our software offering," said Joe Hogan, CEO of ABB. “Mincom helps us to increase the depth of our enterprise asset management offering, building our position as a leader in the key growth sectors of natural resources and energy. For our customers this means extending the life of their infrastructure, optimizing asset management and reducing the overall cost of ownership.”

To ensure continuity for customers, ABB will retain the Mincom management team and its operations will be added to Ventyx, ABB’s dedicated software business.

The Ventyx portfolio combines information and operational technologies (IT and OT) to optimize asset performance, integrate business processes and deliver insight into global business operations. Mincom’s strong presence in the natural resources sector is complementary to ABB’s expertise in mining control systems and its leading position in energy management technology.

“Joining forces with ABB is a logical next step in the development of our company and a strong validation of the business, our people and our products,” said Greg Clark, CEO of Mincom. “It will expand our global reach and service capabilities,