Hitachi announces contract to acquire JR Automation

April 24, 2019 --- Hitachi announced that it entered into a definitive contract for the acquisition of the robotic SI business mainly operated by an American headquartered company, JR Automation Technologies, from funds managed by Crestview Partners (“Crestview”). Subject to the terms and conditions of the contract, Hitachi will acquire JR Automation, which builds production lines and logistics systems using industrial robots. As a result of this acquisition, Hitachi will enter the robotic SI business in North America. The acquisition is expected to be executed by the end of 2019, subject to the satisfaction of certain regulatory and other customary closing conditions.

Hitachi will continue to accelerate the global rollout of the robotic SI business, together with the acquisition of KEC Corporation (KEC), a Japanese robotic system integrator, for which an acquisition contract was completed by Hitachi Industrial Equipment Systems Co., Ltd. (HIES) in March 2019

With the acquisition of JR Automation, Hitachi will acquire JR Automation’s customer base in the OT domain, along with advanced robotic SI technologies, know-how, and resources. Additionally, the acquisition of JR Automation will allow Hitachi to further expand its Lumada Solution business, globally. Lumada is Hitachi’s digital solutions, services, and technologies business, which helps customers and management turn their workplace data into insights to drive digital innovation.

Since its establishment in 1980, JR Automation has been involved in the robotic SI business, building production lines that incorporate industrial robots, predominantly in North America but increasingly around the world. It is capable of designing, building, and adjusting specific lines and entire production lines, and demonstrates expertise in robot-based assembly and welding processes. As such, JR Automation has a customer base across a range of industries, including the automotive, aerospace, e-commerce, and medical device industries.

Hitachi is expanding its Lumada Solution business by leveraging its combined strengths in products, OT, and IT. To further strengthen the business in the OT domain, HIES executed a contract in March 2019 for the acquisition of KEC, a Japanese robotic system integrator.

The acquisition of JR Automation will allow Hitachi to acquire additional technologies, know-how, and resources in the robotic SI business that JR Automation has cultivated over many years, in addition to a customer base across a broad range of industries. Meanwhile, JR Automation will use Hitachi’s advanced R&D technology and resources, aiming to add value to its robotic SI business by utilizing data.

Hitachi will roll out a robotic SI business by leveraging the resources of JR Automation, with its customer base in the U.S. and other regions globally, in addition to HIEC and KEC, with their customer mainly bases in Japan and other parts of Asia. As a result of these initiatives, Hitachi will expand Lumada Solutions globally. Specifically, 4M data from the workplace, obtained by the robotic SI business, will allow for Lumada Solutions to expand across multiple fields, including visualization, manufacturing optimization, logistics, and maintenance.

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