The deal, whose monetary value isn’t disclosed and which is expected to close in Q4, is seen as mutually beneficial for ACRE and HID Global, whose physical access control lines are expected to get a further boost after the purchase.
On September 19, ACRE announced its decision to sell Mercury Security to
HID Global, a major event in the access control M&A block after a period of relative quietness. The deal, whose monetary value isn’t disclosed and which is expected to close in Q4, is seen as beneficial not only for ACRE, which owns the
Vanderbilt and
ComNet brands, but also for HID Global, a subsidiary of ASSA ABLOY whose physical access control lines are expected to get a further boost after the purchase.
In 2013, ACRE purchased Mercury Security which, according to the
Mercury website, is the global leader in the supply of OEM access control hardware with the largest installed base of over three million panels sold. According to ACRE, this has generated a lot of interest from potential buyers. “As the Mercury brand became better known over the years, ACRE received frequent calls from prospective buyers enquiring whether it might be available,” said Kim Loy, Director of Marketing at ACRE.
According to Loy, after an internal strategic assessment, ACRE decided it should explore interest in a more formal manner, which resulted in the sale that she said would allow ACRE to concentrate on its branded businesses. “ACRE will be able to focus on its core Vanderbilt and ComNet brands which share some of the same customers and have the same channel to market,” Loy said.
In an earlier statement, ACRE stated that Vanderbilt provides over 2,000 products across access control, intrusion, video and cloud-based access and video systems in 95 countries. ComNet offers a broad line of fiber optic, copper, and wireless video and data transmission equipment designed for security and surveillance applications in intelligent transportation systems, utility and industrial markets.
“By concentrating on this singular business model and, with additional financial capacity resulting from the sale, ACRE will be in a strong position to make additional acquisitions in the future,” Loy said. “We have a number of plans and projects that we believe will leverage a more focused business, all of which will become clearer in due course.”
HID Global, meanwhile, commented that Mercury’s intelligent controllers, interface boards and software perfectly complement HID’s readers, smart cards and mobile IDs for opening doors. “The acquisition of Mercury Security will advance HID‘s global leadership in the physical access control industry, adding Mercury Security’s high-quality controllers to HID’s product portfolio while extending HID’s installed base of millions of users beyond the readers and smart cards that we are already well known for,” said Stefan Widing, President and CEO of HID Global. “Customers of both HID and Mercury Security will benefit from tighter and more seamless integration of controllers with readers and credentials, as well as from our shared vision for an open, flexible approach to access control.”
According to HID, pending the close, the Mercury Security team will report into HID’s Physical Access Control Solutions (PACS) business, which is led by Harm Radstaak, Vice President and Managing Director. The company added that the acquisition is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions.