Checkpoint Systems to Acquire OATSystems
Checkpoint Systems Inc., manufacturer and marketer of identification, tracking, security and merchandising solutions for the retail industry and its supply chain, enters into a definitive agreement to acquire OATSystems Inc., provider of RFID-based application software and middleware. The all cash transaction is expected to close within two weeks.
Checkpoint and OATSystems offer complementary merchandise protection and inventory management applications that together are said to strengthen their combined presence in the retail market. For retail customers, OATSystems solutions help turn large quantities of data from RFID hardware into meaningful and actionable information. These solutions enable retailers to enhance operational efficiency by obtaining accurate perpetual inventory levels, ensuring on-shelf availability of merchandise that is seamlessly integrated within the framework of existing loss prevention strategies and practices.
Senior management of OATSystems, including Michael George, its president and CEO, will continue to operate the business as a division of Checkpoint. The company will continue to use and develop the OATSystems brand and software platform to serve retail, consumer products and industrial customers.
Checkpoint and OATSystems offer complementary merchandise protection and inventory management applications that together are said to strengthen their combined presence in the retail market. For retail customers, OATSystems solutions help turn large quantities of data from RFID hardware into meaningful and actionable information. These solutions enable retailers to enhance operational efficiency by obtaining accurate perpetual inventory levels, ensuring on-shelf availability of merchandise that is seamlessly integrated within the framework of existing loss prevention strategies and practices.
Senior management of OATSystems, including Michael George, its president and CEO, will continue to operate the business as a division of Checkpoint. The company will continue to use and develop the OATSystems brand and software platform to serve retail, consumer products and industrial customers.
Here is what analysts from Manufacturing Insights, an IDC company, had to say about the acquisition in a recent article titled, "Is 2008 Finally the Year Where We Will See RFID Vendor Consolidation?":
"At Manufacturing Insights, we have been anticipating (if not, expecting) an increased pace of consolidation in the RFID vendor market and think OAT is certainly a good company to acquire. It has well-respected technology, a good relationship with IBM, partnerships with Cisco and Oracle, and several high profile customers, including the recently announced Airbus deal [Airbus and American Apparel announced utilization of RFID in their supply chains]. We also believe strongly that, ultimately, what it will take to be successful in this market is the ability to deliver more business-focused, complete applications, such as asset tracking in the plant, or inventory tracking between the back room and the store floor. The combination of Checkpoint and OAT is certainly intriguing in this 'business-focused, complete solution' sense; something we were never convinced that OAT could accomplish on its own." -Kimberly Knickle, Manufacturing Insights, IDC
"Checkpoint will now have a strong middleware platform on which to base both current and future service capabilities. We are also hopeful that this combination translates into an acceleration of RFID-related security deployments, either to replace or complement/augment current electronic article surveillance (EAS) products." -Leslie Hand, Manufacturing Insights, IDC
"From a broader perspective, this is precisely the kind of consolidation we expect to see more of in 2008 and beyond. There are just too many RFID vendors with either incomplete or complimentary capabilities for it to not make sense. As EPC/RFID continues to emerge from years of unrealistic hype, the ability of the vendor community to offer complete applications with a clear ROI is more important than ever."- Simon Ellis, Manufacturing Insights, IDC
"At Manufacturing Insights, we have been anticipating (if not, expecting) an increased pace of consolidation in the RFID vendor market and think OAT is certainly a good company to acquire. It has well-respected technology, a good relationship with IBM, partnerships with Cisco and Oracle, and several high profile customers, including the recently announced Airbus deal [Airbus and American Apparel announced utilization of RFID in their supply chains]. We also believe strongly that, ultimately, what it will take to be successful in this market is the ability to deliver more business-focused, complete applications, such as asset tracking in the plant, or inventory tracking between the back room and the store floor. The combination of Checkpoint and OAT is certainly intriguing in this 'business-focused, complete solution' sense; something we were never convinced that OAT could accomplish on its own." -Kimberly Knickle, Manufacturing Insights, IDC
"Checkpoint will now have a strong middleware platform on which to base both current and future service capabilities. We are also hopeful that this combination translates into an acceleration of RFID-related security deployments, either to replace or complement/augment current electronic article surveillance (EAS) products." -Leslie Hand, Manufacturing Insights, IDC
"From a broader perspective, this is precisely the kind of consolidation we expect to see more of in 2008 and beyond. There are just too many RFID vendors with either incomplete or complimentary capabilities for it to not make sense. As EPC/RFID continues to emerge from years of unrealistic hype, the ability of the vendor community to offer complete applications with a clear ROI is more important than ever."- Simon Ellis, Manufacturing Insights, IDC