DC Velocity - September 2017

newsworthy

German logistics technology provider Körber AG has acquired the supply chain technology vendor HighJump Software Inc. in a deal that could expand Körber’s capabilities as an enterprise software vendor and allow it to compete for customers in a sector being squeezed by giants like Amazon.com Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

Körber purchased Minneapolis-based HighJump from private equity firm Accell-KKR, which owned HighJump for the past five years. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. HighJump’s sister company, the cloud-based electronic data interchange (EDI) platform provider TrueCommerce, was not included in the deal.

Adding HighJump allows Körber to broaden its logistics software portfolio in North America, HighJump CEO Chad Collins said in an interview. Körber provides three categories of solutions for that market: The DMLogic acquisition was intended to expand Körber’s presence in the U.S. systems integration market, allowing it to compete for business in a sector that has been dominated by companies such as Dematic Corp. and Intelligrated Systems Inc., Bob Kennedy, DMLogic’s vice president of business development, said in an interview.

The acquisition of HighJump “gives Körber more of an entrée into the U.S. market, which was the driving force behind their acquiring DMLogic,” Kennedy said. While HighJump, Inconso, and DMLogic all have warehouse management systems (WMS), the products address different market niches based on variations in technology, geography, and the size of customer they serve, he said.

Judging by Körber’s record of letting acquired companies operate independently, HighJump customers should not see any change due to the company’s new ownership or its split from TrueCommerce, which will continue to resell HighJump software, HighJump’s Collins said.

The bigger impact of the acquisition is that it will allow HighJump to accelerate its growth as a provider of supply chain management software, he said. “What drove the change in ownership was that we required, one, the ability to have more growth internationally, and two, to have more access to capital for making additional acquisitions in the supply chain space,” Collins said.

—Ben Ames

Körber acquires HighJump

Supply chain technology provider Manhattan Associates Inc. said it has added capabilities to its transportation management system (TMS) that are designed for shippers and motor carriers who want to tender and transport loads without the use of an intermediary such as a freight broker or a third-party logistics service provider.

The app platform, called TMS 2017, is part of the Atlanta-based company’s Supply Chain Solution suite, Manhattan said. At the same time, Manhattan said it had unveiled an updated “carrier management” suite of decision-support tools for truckload carriers to help them reduce overhead costs and improve utilization, efficiency, and profitability.

The new technology is Manhattan’s response to the trend toward the so-called “Uber for Trucking” model, named after the San Francisco-based ride-sharing pioneer that has launched its own freight operation, where shippers can procure capacity from carriers other than their primary partners and can do so using a smartphone app that links directly with carriers.

Most small truckers do not have the high-end information technology (IT) infrastructure of their larger counterparts, making tendering, procuring, and tracking shipments through traditional means more difficult, according to Manhattan.

Manhattan said its “TMS 2017” platform would be integrated with MacroPoint, a global freight platform that provides shippers with real-time visibility of freight they have entrusted to third-party carriers. This integration gives users immediate access to 1 million drivers and over 2 million connections to electronic truck-tracking devices in cabs. MacroPoint was acquired by Canadian software developer Descartes Systems Group last month.