Software services company Wipro Ltd has agreed to acquire US-based digital engineering services firm International TechneGroup Inc (ITI) for $45 million (around Rs 312 crore at the current exchange rate).
Wipro said in a stock-exchange filing that the cash deal will enable it to offer end-to-end solutions in digital engineering and manufacturing. The target company will also help Wipro build out its offerings based on the ‘Industry 4.0’ paradigm, the filing added.
Industry 4.0 refers to the trend of automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies.
Harmeet Chauhan, Wipro's senior vice president for industrial and engineering services, said enterprises were looking for ways to build a “digital thread” across their design, engineering and manufacturing components.
Separately, ITI chief executive officer Tom Gregory said the two companies would benefit from synergies.
“Clients will gain access to Wipro's global services and ITI’s innovative solutions to accelerate the adoption of digital manufacturing initiatives,” he added.
Wipro said it expects the acquisition to be completed by the end of September. The transaction is subject to approval by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
Wipro’s shares were trading at Rs 293.30 apiece at noon on Thursday, down 0.2% from the previous close.
Founded in 1983, ITI offers computer aided design (CAD) and product lifecycle management (PLM) interoperability software services to its customers. The company, which is privately held, has 130 employees with offices across the United Kingdom, Italy, Israel and Germany.
Wipro, a multinational software, consulting and business process services firm, has more than 1.7 lakh employees and offices across the world. The company uses services such as cognitive computing, automation and cloud analytics to help its clients adapt to digital services and digitalisation.
Wipro’s M&A deals
Wipro had in February this year agreed to sell two of its cloud-based businesses to US-based Alight Solutions LLC for up to $110 million (Rs 784 crore).
This marked the second deal between the two companies. In July last year, Wipro had agreed to acquire Alight HR Services India Pvt. Ltd, the local arm of Alight Solutions, for $117 million (Rs 800 crore).
Expanding its reach in the Australia and Asia-Pacific region, Wipro had late last year integrated the strategic design consulting team of Australian design agency Syfte.
