Hampleton Partners, an international mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance advisory firm for technology companies, has advised DOCUFY GmbH, a German software manufacturer and a service provider for technical documentation, on its acquisition by Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, a German precision mechanical engineering company.

“We are delighted to have advised on this transaction,” said Miro Parizek, Principal Partner at Hampleton. “Our great team of experienced executives achieved this through leveraging their strategic-focused capabilities in IT. This is yet another great example of Hampleton’s dedicated expertise and how we apply proven experience to execute an optimal transaction.”

“Hampleton helped us to find a partner that is clearly a great fit for us, and one we hadn’t considered ourselves,” said Uwe Reissenweber, DOCUFY’S Founder and Managing Director. “Heidelberg has a great reputation in Germany as an important industrial player, however, I was not aware of their vision of the digital factory and the investment they have made into developing that business unit.”

Reissenweber added, “I very much look forward to being part of Heidelberg with its resources, vision and agility to respond to the requirements of Industry 4.0, and to drive further the international expansion of DOCUFY. I also look forward to joining Heidelberg management and supporting the growth of their digital business unit.”

“With the takeover of DOCUFY, we are gradually implementing our strategy ‘Heidelberg goes digital!’. But the investment in the growth market of digital product life cycle management will also strengthen our own competitiveness,” says Rainer Hundsdörfer, CEO of Heidelberg. “This transaction illustrates the continuing trend of traditional companies expanding into technology based industries via M&A. Other examples include Walmart’s purchase of Jet.com for $3 billion and Unilever’s acquisition of Dollar Shave Club for $1 billion,” added Mr. Parizek.

The engagement was led by Axel Brill with David Riemenschneider and Nicholas Milligan rounding out the transaction team for Hampleton. The expert team uses a proven methodical, structured and open approach to M&A that creates multiple options leading to the most rewarding transactions.

 

Please tell me about your involvement in the deal?

Axel Brill, Director at Hampleton Partners led the deal team who advised DOCUFY on it’s sale to Heidelberg.

This includes everything from creating the documents needed and finding the ideal buyer to structuring the due diligence process and managing SPA negotiations.

Of course, the DOCUFY management knew of Heidelberg which is a great brand and important German industrial player, but they were not aware of their vision of the digital factory and the business unit they are building to address the needs of that market. Hampleton, through their extensive market research activities, could identify Heidelberg as the ideal partner.

 

In technology deals, particularly in those involving software, there are almost always challenges to overcome in the field of Intellectual Property (IP) rights

 

Why is this a good deal for all involved?

For DOCUFY, a global strategic partner like Heidelberg allows them to target international customers much easier than before, thus taking the company’s growth to new levels. DOCUFYs products will be closely integrated into Heidelberg´s Digital Platform and will be sold through their international channels. DOCUFY will benefit from being part of a globally renowned company with access to many industrial clients in Germany and abroad.

For Heidelberger Druckmaschinen, the DOCUFY products are an ideal addition, complementing their existing software portfolio in their digital platform business unit. The Heidelberg digital platform helps customers to achieve a much quicker time-tomarket, based on Heidelberg´s experience and knowledge in the product lifecycle management (PLM) area.

Moreover, both companies will benefit from cross-selling opportunities in their existing customer base.

 

What challenges arose? How did you navigate them?

In technology deals, particularly in those involving software, there are almost always challenges to overcome in the field of Intellectual Property (IP) rights. Very often, open source software is being used within the products. Experience shows that these issues must be identified at an early stage of the process, making sure that all components are licensed properly. The best piece of advice to the seller is to identify and “heal” potential risks before they come up in due diligence, which is part of Hampleton´s preparation processes and data room strategy.