Accenture to Acquire Technology Consultancy SALT Solutions to Improve Manufacturing Operations and Logistics with Cloud-Based Industrial IoT Platforms

NEW YORK & WÜRZBURG, Germany–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has agreed to acquire SALT Solutions AG (“SALT Solutions”), a technology consultancy headquartered in Würzburg, Germany. The firm implements and maintains IT systems for production, operations and logistics at leading German automotive, manufacturing, consumer goods and chemicals companies. The acquisition will help Accenture build cloud-based industrial internet of things (IoT) platforms that speed up and optimize clients’ production and logistics and enable them to reduce quality and waste issues along the entire supply chain.

SALT Solutions will join Accenture Industry X, which helps clients improve how they operate factories and plants. SALT Solutions brings a team of more than 500 highly skilled professionals with deep expertise in manufacturing and supply chains systems including, but not limited to, SAP manufacturing software. Complementing Accenture’s expertise in enterprise resource planning systems and cloud solutions, the acquisition will be fundamental to expanding Accenture Industry X’s digital manufacturing, operations and supply chain business in Germany.

Frank Riemensperger, market unit lead for Accenture in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Russia, said: “To win in today’s changing global industry landscape, companies need to excel in Industry 4.0 and put digital at the core of their business. SALT Solutions’ expert knowledge and experience in dynamic digital manufacturing and optimization will significantly deepen Accenture’s shop floor expertise.”

Nigel Stacey, global lead for Accenture Industry X, added: “We are building cloud-based industrial IoT platforms for our clients that capture and turn underused shop floor information into insights for real-time and long-term strategic decision-making. SALT Solutions’ unique production and logistics expertise will be a key enabler for these platforms.”

Maximilian Brandl, CEO of SALT Solutions, commented: “By joining Accenture Industry X, we will be able to offer clients a holistic approach to their digital transformation of manufacturing operations and logistics, adding even more value along the entire supply chain.”

SALT Solutions is a certified SAP Gold Partner and has additional offices in Berlin, Dresden, Düsseldorf, Munich and Stuttgart.

SALT Solutions will be pivotal to bolstering Accenture’s digital manufacturing and operations capabilities, which Accenture has been growing through acquisitions in different markets. These include PLM Systems in Italy, Callisto Integration in Canada, Silveo in France and Enterprise System Partners in Ireland. It will also follow other acquisitions Accenture has made to strengthen Industry X in Germany, which include embedded software company ESR Labs, technology consultancy Zielpuls and strategic design consultancy designaffairs.

Completion of the acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions. Financial terms were not disclosed.

About Accenture

Accenture is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services in strategy and consulting, interactive, technology and operations, with digital capabilities across all of these services. We combine unmatched experience and specialized capabilities across more than 40 industries — powered by the world’s largest network of Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers. With 513,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture brings continuous innovation to help clients improve their performance and create lasting value across their enterprises. Visit us at www.accenture.com.

Accenture Industry X embeds intelligence in how clients run factories and plants and design and engineer products. We use digital technologies like AI, cloud and IoT to make manufacturing and operations more efficient, effective and safe, and develop and scale connected products and services faster to drive new revenues and sustainable growth. Learn more about how Industry X transforms the way companies make things and the very things they make on https://www.accenture.com/us-en/services/industryx0-index.

Forward-Looking Statements

Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “likely,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “projects,” “believes,” “estimates,” “positioned,” “outlook” and similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. For a discussion of risks and actions taken in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, see “Our results of operations have been significantly adversely affected and could in the future be materially adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic” under Item 1A, “Risk Factors” in Accenture plc’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended May 31, 2020. Many of the following risks, uncertainties and other factors identified below are, and will be, amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. These risks include, without limitation, risks that: Accenture and SALT Solutions AG will not be able to close the transaction in the time period anticipated, or at all, which is dependent on the parties’ ability to satisfy certain closing conditions; the transaction might not achieve the anticipated benefits for Accenture; Accenture’s results of operations have been significantly adversely affected and could in the future be materially adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic; Accenture’s results of operations could be adversely affected by volatile, negative or uncertain economic and political conditions and the effects of these conditions on the company’s clients’ businesses and levels of business activity; Accenture’s business depends on generating and maintaining ongoing, profitable client demand for the company’s services and solutions including through the adaptation and expansion of its services and solutions in response to ongoing changes in technology and offerings, and a significant reduction in such demand or an inability to respond to the evolving technological environment could materially affect the company’s results of operations; if Accenture is unable to keep its supply of skills and resources in balance with client demand around the world and attract and retain professionals with strong leadership skills, the company’s business, the utilization rate of the company’s professionals and the company’s results of operations may be materially adversely affected; Accenture could face legal, reputational and financial risks if the company fails to protect client and/or company data from security breaches or cyberattacks; the markets in which Accenture operates are highly competitive, and Accenture might not be able to compete effectively; changes in Accenture’s level of taxes, as well as audits, investigations and tax proceedings, or changes in tax laws or in their interpretation or enforcement, could have a material adverse effect on the company’s effective tax rate, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition; Accenture’s profitability could materially suffer if the company is unable to obtain favorable pricing for its services and solutions, if the company is unable to remain competitive, if its cost-management strategies are unsuccessful or if it experiences delivery inefficiencies; Accenture’s results of operations could be materially adversely affected by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; as a result of Accenture’s geographically diverse operations and its growth strategy to continue to expand in its key markets around the world, the company is more susceptible to certain risks; Accenture’s business could be materially adversely affected if the company incurs legal liability; Accenture’s work with government clients exposes the company to additional risks inherent in the government contracting environment; if Accenture is unable to manage the organizational challenges associated with its size, the company might be unable to achieve its business objectives; Accenture’s ability to attract and retain business and employees may depend on its reputation in the marketplace; if Accenture does not successfully manage and develop its relationships with key alliance partners or fails to anticipate and establish new alliances in new technologies, the company’s results of operations could be adversely affected; Accenture might not be successful at acquiring, investing in or integrating businesses, entering into joint ventures or divesting businesses; if Accenture is unable to protect or enforce its intellectual property rights or if Accenture’s services or solutions infringe upon the intellectual property rights of others or the company loses its ability to utilize the intellectual property of others, its business could be adversely affected; Accenture’s results of operations and share price could be adversely affected if it is unable to maintain effective internal controls; changes to accounting standards or in the estimates and assumptions Accenture makes in connection with the preparation of its consolidated financial statements could adversely affect its financial results; many of Accenture’s contracts include fees subject to the attainment of targets or specific service levels, which could increase the variability of the company’s revenues and impact its margins; Accenture might be unable to access additional capital on favorable terms or at all and if the company raises equity capital, it may dilute its shareholders’ ownership interest in the company; Accenture may be subject to criticism and negative publicity related to its incorporation in Ireland; as well as the risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed under the “Risk Factors” heading in Accenture plc’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and other documents filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this news release speak only as of the date they were made, and Accenture undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements made in this news release or to conform such statements to actual results or changes in Accenture’s expectations.