Automation & IIoT

Aveva Acquires Osisoft: Deal Accelerates Industrial Enterprise Digitalization

Aug. 27, 2020

The acquisition will add scale, support industry diversification and accelerate digitalization.

At a Glance:

Cambridge, U.K.-based Aveva announced it will acquire California-based Osisoft for $5 billion.
The companies’ complementary industrial and software expertise will support full-stack solutions that span edge, plant and enterprise deployment models.
Schneider Electric, which currently holds a 60% stake in Aveva, has committed to vote in favor of the acquisition.

Industrial software provider Aveva Group announced an agreement to acquire California-based Osisoft for $5 billion.

The deal, expected to close at the end of 2020, will bring together Osisoft’s real-time industrial data software and Aveva’s end-to-end engineering, operations and performance offerings. Osisoft founder and CEO Dr. J. Patrick Kennedy said the deal will allow Osisoft to service “the largest transformation projects in history, including Industry 4.0+ and IIoT.”

The agreement gives Aveva’s comprehensive software portfolio access to Osisoft’s PI System, thereby bolstering the ability to create an integrated data foundation for leveraging big data, cloud and AI-driven insights—in particular enabling Digital Twin, HMI/SCADA, Manufacturing Execution System and Asset Performance.

According to Osisoft, Kennedy will take on a new role as chairman emeritus and will become the largest individual shareholder in the combined company. Osisoft is currently owned by three shareholders: Estudillo Holdings Corp., a company majority owned by Dr. J. Patrick Kennedy and his family; SB/OSI, Inc., owned by SoftBank Group; and MDT Holdings, Inc., owned by Mitsui Group.

Headquartered in San Leandro, Calif., Osisoft started out as a data historian software startup in 1980 and today has installations in 127 countries. Osisoft’s PI System is used across manufacturing, energy, utilities, pharmaceuticals, life sciences, data centers, facilities and the process industries, as well as the public sector and the federal government.

The acquisition is touted as one of the largest deals ever attempted by a U.K. tech company. Schneider Electric, which currently holds a 60% stake in Cambridge, U.K.-based Aveva, has committed to vote in favor of the acquisition.

Peter Herweck, vice chairman of Aveva and executive vice president, Industrial Automation, Schneider Electric, said Aveva’s industrial software is a key element of Schneider Electric’s IoT-enabled architecture, EcoStruxure. “The combination of Aveva and [Osisoft’s PI System] will accelerate our AVEVA partnership with significant customer value across process and hybrid automation industries plus the building and infrastructure sectors,” Herweck noted.

About the Author

Rehana Begg | Editor-in-Chief, Machine Design

As Machine Design’s content lead, Rehana Begg is tasked with elevating the voice of the design and multi-disciplinary engineer in the face of digital transformation and engineering innovation. Begg has more than 24 years of editorial experience and has spent the past decade in the trenches of industrial manufacturing, focusing on new technologies, manufacturing innovation and business. Her B2B career has taken her from corporate boardrooms to plant floors and underground mining stopes, covering everything from automation & IIoT, robotics, mechanical design and additive manufacturing to plant operations, maintenance, reliability and continuous improvement. Begg holds an MBA, a Master of Journalism degree, and a BA (Hons.) in Political Science. She is committed to lifelong learning and feeds her passion for innovation in publishing, transparent science and clear communication by attending relevant conferences and seminars/workshops.

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