Global IT consulting giant Accenture ($ACN) has acquired Umlaut, an engineering consulting and services firm headquartered in Aachen, Germany. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
This is technology M&A deal number 340 that ChannelE2E has covered so far in 2021.
Accenture Industry X and Umlaut: Potential Synergies
Umlaut, armed with 4,200 engineers and consultants across 17 countries, helps customers to "transform how they design, engineer and manufacture their products as well as embed sustainability," Accenture asserts.
Umlaut aligns with Accenture's Industry X services business -- which provides engineering services to such vertical markets as automotive, aerospace & defense, telecommunications, energy and utilities, the buyer says.
Accenture has acquired more than 22 businesses to enhance the company's Industry X capabilities since 2017. Example Industry X-focused deals include Electro 80 (Australia), industrial robotics and automation services provider Pollux (Brazil), operations consultancy Myrtle (US) and technology consultancy SALT Solutions (Germany), Accenture notes.
Accenture Acquires Umlaut: Executive Perspectives
In a prepared statement about the Umlaut acquisition, Accenture CEO Julie Sweet said:
“We predicted that digital would ultimately be applied at scale to the core of a company’s business – the design, engineering and manufacturing of their products. And, for nearly a decade Accenture has been building the unique capabilities and ecosystem partnerships to combine the power of digital with traditional engineering services. COVID-19 has accelerated the need for companies to transform these core operations, and umlaut’s leading and highly-specialized engineering services will enhance our ability to meet the accelerating demand and also continue innovating for our clients.”
Added Nigel Stacey, global lead of Accenture Industry X:
“Bringing world-class digital engineering and manufacturing expertise to our clients helps them rapidly scale, accelerate growth, improve productivity and safety, and embed sustainability across their operations. From consumers to R&D to the supply chain and factory floor, and back again, companies that use the power of data and digital to build value will become — and remain — relevant, resilient and responsible.”
Concluded Marc Peter Althoff, chief technology officer at Umlaut:
“Business leaders across many industries who face the convergence of the digital and the product world are looking for a trusted partner that understands their language and can really help navigate each step of the journey to bring tangible outcomes in engineering and manufacturing. We are excited to bring our unique engineering and consulting culture, deep industry know-how and subject matter expertise to Accenture Industry X and jointly create the capabilities and scale to help clients successfully transform.”
Accenture now employs more than 537,000 people, who serve clients in more than 120 countries, the company says.
