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Infor offloads its asset management unit on Swedish 'digital reality' biz to focus on industry-specific cloud ERP

That's fancy talk for sensors, software, and autonomous technologies btw

Infor has sold its asset management applications business to Hexagon AB, a Swedish industrial tech biz, in a deal valued at $2.75bn.

At the same time, Koch Industries, which bought Infor for around $13bn in 2020, will also have an ownership stake in Hexagon. The Swedish firm's main shareholder, MSAB, says it intends to propose Brett Watson, president of Koch Equity Development, for Hexagon's Board of Directors as soon as is feasible after closing.

In theory, enterprise asset management encompasses the design/build phase, operations, and decommissioning of large capital-intensive machinery – think oil rigs, for example.

Hexagon said its "digital reality solutions" – meaning sensors, software and autonomous technologies – will combine with the asset management applications it has purchased.

Meanwhile, Infor will focus on its industry-specific cloud ERP suites. The idea of ERP fine-tuned to niche sectors is seen as the string to Infor's bow, and has been followed by SAP, which launched an Industry Cloud in June last year.

Infor CEO Kevin Samuelson said in a statement the deal would enable "Infor to double-down on providing innovative, industry-specific solutions that help address our customers' biggest business challenges."

Not everyone has been impressed with Infor's software, however. In September, the company paid UK hardware and construction retailer Travis Perkins £4.2m in settlement for a four-year failed ERP project that cost £108m.

Hexagon president and CEO Ola Rollén said the deal with Infor was a "strong endorsement of our mission to put data to work to enable autonomous, connected ecosystems that boost efficiency, productivity, quality and safety for our customers."

Koch Industries bought Infor from Golden Gate Capital. Prior to that, Infor was privately held and a candidate for an Initial Public Offering when the industrial group swooped in to scoop up the rest of the company. The ERP outfit had already received a $1.5bn investment from Koch Equity Development (KED) in January 2019. KED had also invested $2bn in early 2017. ®

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