Sources inform “Globes” that the Visonic Group of Israel has acquired positioning technology company ELPAS Local Positioning Systems in a share swap. The merged company will have 430 employees, and offer products combining technology from both companies. Visonic develops and manufactures home security networks. ELPAS shareholders will receive an estimated 15% of Visonic. ELPAS founder, president, and CEO Israel Radomsky will manage the technology division of the merged company. The deal was signed at the end of last week.
Chairman Yaacov Kotlicki, the late Moshe Kotlicki, and Tadeusz (Teddy) Keshet founded Visonic in 1973; the company produced warning systems. In recent years, the company has developed products for home security networks, sometimes called the smart home. These networks, which link electronic systems, are controlled either automatically or manually by the user.
Visonic’s security products are used in these networks. The company recently signed an agreement with a European electric company, apparently in the Netherlands, to supply management and security systems. The agreement fits in with company plans to enter the security solutions field, as part of power companies’ aspirations to provide broadband services. Visonic’s major competitor is Electronics Line, dual-listed on the XETRA and Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE).
Visonic had $50 million in sales in 2002, most in exports to over 70 countries. The company had 400 employees before the merger. Visonic planned a TASE IPO in 2000, but the capital market crisis ended the plan. Visonic also planned a private placement in mid-2002 to position itself for a future IPO on a European stock exchange.
Founded by Radomsky in 1995, Ra’anana-based ELPAS has 30 employees. The company has raised $10 million to date, and its investors include Star Ventures Enterprises, Technoplus Ventures, Ampal - American Israel Corporation (Nasdaq: AMPL), Ophir Holdings, and Zoom-It Holdings.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on March 17, 2003