Sunnyvale, CA-based provider of management solutions for mobile/field workforces Trimble has acquired privately-held ALK Technologies Inc. of Princeton, NJ. The ALK Technologies business will be reported as part of Trimble’s Mobile Solutions segment. Financial terms were not disclosed.
As a global provider of routing, mapping, mileage and navigation technologies, ALK Technologies offers proprietary routing and international map-based solutions for transportation, logistics and mobile workforces.
According to Trimble, adding ALK will “extend and complement Trimble’s Transportation & Logistics Div. product portfolio, including TMW Systems’ transportation management solutions, PeopleNet’s integrated onboard computing and mobile communications systems, and GEOTrac’s fleet management and worker safety solutions for the oil and gas industry.”
ALK software products include CoPilot Live, which offers onboard GPS navigation for professional drivers and PC*MILER, a truck-specific mileage solution for logistics, manufacturing, government and transportation operations. ALK also offers a “consistent” data platform for operational planning activities, such as mileage and routing and in-cab navigation applications used by fleet drivers.
ALK products are sold worldwide and Trimble noted that “approximately 64% of North American for-hire motor carriers use ALK solutions, including 98 of the Top 100 largest for-hire carriers, 47 of the Top 50 logistics companies and 77 of the Top 100 private fleets.”
"The addition of ALK expands the portfolio and scope of innovative solutions we can offer transportation providers, logistics companies and shippers,” said David Wangler, president of TMW Systems, a Trimble Company.
“The combination of ALK’s routing, mapping, mileage and navigation capabilities with our enterprise transportation management software and the mobile communications solutions under the Trimble Transportation and Logistics umbrella supports our comprehensive and industry-focused technology approach,” he added.
Wangler told FleetOwner that the Trimble organization is “very excited about opportunities [afforded by the ALK acquisition] to grow its businesses in the new year.” He noted that ALK will remain headquartered in Princeton so that it may continue to tap the talent and experience of the strong academic community there.”
Ron Konezny, general manager of Trimble’s Transportation & Logistics Div. told FleetOwner that the ALK buy “sends [the marketplace] a powerful message as this is Trimble’s fifth acquisition in this space since August of 2011, when PeopleNet was acquired.”
"This is a significant milestone in ALK’s long history in transportation,” pointed out Barry Glick, executive vice president & general manager of ALK, who will continue to lead the organization. “We are excited to join our well-known and respected partner TMW Systems under the global umbrella of Trimble,” he continued. “These organizations share our passion and vision for how location information can transform business and productivity.”
Glick told FleetOwner that ALK is well-suited to come under the Trimble umbrella, especially given that “the business has been organized to bring products to market with the widest reach possible.”
