MILWAUKEE, Wis. & TROY, Mich.—Industrial automation provided Rockwell Automation Inc., and Troy Mich.-based Plex Systems, developer of cloud-native smart manufacturing platforms, have entered into an agreement whereby Rockwell will acquire Plex for $2.22 billion in cash.
Plex offers a single-instance, multi-tenant SaaS manufacturing platform, including manufacturing execution systems, quality, and supply chain management capabilities. Plex says it has more than 700 customers and manages more than eight billion transactions per day.
“This acquisition will accelerate our strategy to bring the Connected Enterprise to life, driving faster time to value for our customers as they increasingly adopt cloud solutions to improve resilience, agility, and sustainability in their operations,” said Blake Moret, Chairman and CEO of Rockwell Automation. “Combining Plex’s cutting-edge cloud technology with Rockwell’s existing software portfolio and domain expertise will add customer value and create more ways to win. The acquisition will also accelerate our software revenue growth and strengthen our annual recurring revenue streams.”
Companies are increasingly seeking to upgrade their production systems with modern, cloud-based manufacturing execution systems that are easy to implement, use, and maintain, according to Plex, which says its platform helps customers to connect, automate, track, and analyze their operations and connected supply chains.
“Rockwell believes in the power of data and technology to transform manufacturing and industrial operations,” said Brian Shepherd, senior vice president, Software and Control, for Rockwell Automation. “Together with the advanced asset maintenance and management capabilities provided by our recent Fiix acquisition, Rockwell will have a strong portfolio of cloud-native solutions for our customers’ production systems upon completion of the Plex acquisition.”
“Plex has always been more than a company,” said Bill Berutti, CEO of Plex. “We have been a leader in the movement to smart manufacturing and a trusted partner to more than 700 manufacturing companies around the globe. Joining forces with Rockwell is great for our customers, our partners, and our employees as we move to expand our reach and impact and accelerate our mission to bring manufacturing to the cloud.”
Plex will be reported as part of Rockwell’s Software and Control operating segment which provides hardware and software offerings for the design, operation, and maintenance of production automation and management systems. As a part of the acquisition, Rockwell will welcome more than 500 new employees from Plex.
The acquisition will be financed with a combination of cash and short-term and long-term debt. Subject to customary closing conditions and completion of regulatory review, the acquisition is expected to close in Rockwell’s fiscal fourth quarter.
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