Omnitracs Completes XRS Corp. Acquisition
This story appears in the Nov. 10 print edition of Transport Topics.
Omnitracs said it has completed its acquisition of XRS Corp. for about $178 million and plans to tightly integrate the business into its main operations.
The transaction, which closed on Oct. 31, greatly expands Omnitracs’ mobile device-based software and complements its existing MCP line of fixed-mount onboard systems.
Omnitracs first announced its intent to buy XRS, formerly Xata Corp., on Sept. 2.
“By integrating XRS into the Omnitracs portfolio of businesses, we can now offer fleets an extended array of industry-leading solutions, helping fleets make intelligent decisions that positively impact all aspects of their operations,” Omnitracs CEO John Graham said in the Nov. 3 announcement.
The acquired company’s latest platform, also named XRS, runs on a variety of Android and Windows smart phones and tablets and provides applications designed to improve fleet efficiency and regulatory compliance.
Graham has said the XRS software will aid Omnitracs’ efforts to extend its reach to small and midsize carriers, as well as private fleets.
David Post, Omnitracs’ president and chief operating officer, told Transport Topics that the XRS technology expands Omnitracs’ addressable market.
“It puts another arrow in our quiver,” he said.
Omnitracs will continue to support current XRS products, Post said, including its older Turnpike, XataNet and MobileMax offerings.
The company will pursue a “tight integration” of XRS, rather than leaving it as a stand-alone business unit, he said.
“The status quo is not going to be the eventual outcome,” Post said. “We will be integrating the brand into the larger Omnitracs organization.”
Although XRS will be part of the Omnitracs brand at a corporate level, the company anticipates maintaining some of the XRS brand equity at the product level, he said.
However, the company is still working to determine the leadership structure for XRS; its CEO, Jay Coughlan, decided to depart the company on “amicable” terms, Post said.
“We’re very pleased with the asset that we purchased and that he and the rest of the leadership team have built over the years,” Post added.
Omnitracs is in the process of moving its corporate headquarters from San Diego to Dallas, where it will host its first user conference on Feb. 8-11 under its new ownership.
Post said he expects XRS to be a part of that conference, along with all of Omnitracs’ other products and operating companies.
Vista Equity Partners bought Omnitracs from Qualcomm Inc. for $800 million in November 2013.
Omnitracs likely will consolidate some XRS operations at the Dallas headquarters to improve efficiency, but also plans to maintain
a presence at XRS’ current offices in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, Post said.
“We are very pleased with the talent and the human capital that we have acquired, and we don’t want to lose that,” he said.
With the addition of XRS, Omnitracs said it now provides fleet-management technology to more than 30,000 customers with nearly 1 million mobile assets in 63 countries.
The purchase marks Omnitracs’ second major acquisition since it was bought by Vista Equity. In December, Omnitracs acquired Roadnet Technologies, a provider of routing and fleet-management software to private fleets.
Moving forward, Omnitracs will continue to look for potential acquisition opportunities while also investing in its current operations to drive growth, Post said.
“We want to be the dominant player in fleet-management software on both the for-hire and private-fleet sides,” he said. “We want to win at all ends of the market. We believe investing both organically and inorganically is the way to do that.”
