WOOD Group has acquired Houston-based Ingenious, a supplier of proprietary software and consulting services to the global chemical, oil & gas, and energy industries.
The deal, for an undisclosed sum, will see Ingenious incorporated into the Aberdeen company’s, Wood Group Mustang (WGM) arm, also based in Houston. It is Wood Group’s second acquisition this week, following Tuesday’s purchase of Australian firm SVT Engineering Consultants.
In addition to a suite of products that includes remote performance monitoring, production planning and scheduling, e-learning and training simulators for the process industries, Ingenious also operates an office in Mumbai, India, which a company spokesperson said would continue to serve the Indian market and be used to serve customers worldwide.
Having previously used the company as a supplier, Wood Group Mustang identified that Ingenious – founded in 2000 by Vibhu Sharma and Bharat Kamdar – could bring benefits to both its upstream and downstream operations. Last year the company had revenue of around $5 million. It employs 40 people.
“The capabilities Ingenious provides will enhance the scale and breadth of our automation and control business,” said WGM chief executive officer Michelle McNichol, adding that together, the teams can pursue projects that neither could explore independently.
Another major attraction of Ingenious is the firm’s strength in the operator training simulator market which WGM said would enhance its offering in control system simulators, training tools and services.
“Adding Ingenious’s innovative solutions to our existing portfolio, including simulation, will allow us to offer high-value added solutions to our clients,” said the spokesperson. “Simulation is an important component of Ingenious’s business and played an important role in the decision to acquire it.”
Vibhu Sharma, chief executive officer of Ingenious, said that joining WGM’s automation and control business would allow the company to offer existing and new customers an enviable combination of software and consulting services.
“It’s also a match culturally as we value the same principles that Wood Group embodies,” he added. “All of us at Ingenious see this as a springboard to establish a strong leadership position in the manufacturing operations management space.”
Wood Group shares closed last night up 3.5 per cent to 610p.
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