TransCore gets Amtech

TransCore completed its acquisition of Amtech Systems from Unova July 10. By taking over Amtech, the pioneer of electronic tolling in north America, TransCore the leading system integrator has created the most formidable electronic tolling supplier in the world. The combined company will have 1400 employees based in 70 offices and annual sales of $250m. It will conduct all its business under the name TransCore.

A statement says the company will maintain all the Amtech offices and its Dallas head office will house leading marketing and administrative personnel and software development, with the key technical support offices in Atlanta, Boston, Harrisburg and San Diego. TransCore has acquired the 75k sq ft, 225 employee development and manufacturing facility of Amtech in Albuquerque NM which has been named the Amtech Technology Center. With John Worthington president and CEO, other senior officers are John Simler chief operating officer, Dick Blackwell (formerly Amtech VP) exec VP marketing, John Foote exec VP corporate development, Kelly Gravelle exec VP & chief technical officer, Jerry Landt (Amtech co-founder & chief technology officer) exec VP & chief scientist, George McGraw exec VP Operations (the position he had at Amtech), John Shoemaker exec VP business development (same position as in Amtech), David Sparks exec VP business initiatives, and Claudia Wiegand exec VP finance & admin.

The statement says Amtech has 10m electronic tags and 19k readers distributed in 32 countries (a mix of toll, parking and freight rail car systems), and it calls it “one of the world’s leading providers of wireless ID, tracking and monitoring technologies.” It notes the company’s pioneering role in establishing the world’s first ETC system (in Dallas in mid-1989 and claims the world’s first open road ETC system in Oklahoma in Sept 1991 (though MFS/Texas Instruments may have pipped them on E-470 in Denver in July 1991 (see TRnl#42, Sept 99 p20) It also notes Amtech’s clearinghouse system for interopreability in Dallas and its introdeuction of what it calls “a paper-thin, batteryless read/write sticker tag priced under $10, well below traditional transponder prices in the range $17 to $55.

Unova has a minority equity position in TransCore as a result of the acquisition and the companies say they will have a close research and development relationship. Intermec a Unova subsidiary will retain the patents to Intellitag(r) technology and TransCore will be the exclusive reseller of this for ET, traffic management and other ITS-related purposes.