PTC Acquires ThingWorx

By DE Editors

PTC announced it has acquired ThingWorx for approximately $112 million,  plus a possible earn-out of up to $18 million.

According to PTC, the ThingWorx acquisition extends its strategy by “accelerating its ability to support manufacturers seeking competitive advantage as they create and service smart, connected products.”

PTC  will use the ThingWorx platform to speed the creation of high value “Internet of things” applications that support manufacturers’ service strategies, such as predictive maintenance and system monitoring, in complement to PTC’s existing service lifecycle management (SLM) and extended PLM solution portfolio. PTC will also now offer its customers a means to establish a secure, reliable connection to their products as well as a platform to rapidly develop applications for maintaining and operating them, according to the company.

“All aspects of our strategy to date have centered on helping manufacturing companies transform how they create and service smart,  connected products,” said PTC president and CEO Jim Heppelmann. “For manufacturers today, it is clear to us that improved service strategies and service delivery is the near-term ‘killer app’ for the Internet of things and this opportunity has guided our strategy for some time. With this acquisition, PTC now possesses an innovation platform that will allow us to accelerate how we help our customers capitalize on the market opportunity that the ]Internet of things] presents.”

“At ThingWorx, we share PTC’s vision for helping organizations fundamentally leverage the connected world,” said Russell Fadel, CEO and co-founder, ThingWorx. “We believe all industries, but especially manufacturing, will be transformed in the Internet of things era. We are excited to pursue this broad set of opportunities with the resources and proven solution portfolio that PTC provides.”

The acquisition is expected to add more than $10 million of revenue over the next 12 months, with $5 million to $7 million of revenue in FY 2014. As a result of cost synergies and investment plans for ThingWorx,  PTC still expects FY 2014 non-GAAP EPS of $2.00 to $2.10. PTC drew $110 million from its credit facility to finance the transaction.

For more information, visit PTC.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.