DRS Investment acquires survey and assessment automation software specialist

Software investor with its third acquisition since inception in 2017

Private equity investor “DRS Investment GmbH” (DRS) complees its third software transaction in the second year of DRS’ existence by acquiring a majority stake in software specialist Electric Paper Evaluationssysteme GmbH (EPE). EPE specializes in software solutions for conducting surveys that are automatically created, completed and evaluated. As one of the world’s leading suppliers in this segment for 20 years, EPE offers software for the evaluation of university lecturers as well as for computer aided tests and examinations . With the help of its new shareholder DRS, EPE intends to systematically expand marketing and sales activities as well as develop the new business segment of cloud computing.

 “We are convinced that in DRS we have found the right partner for a sustainable development of EPE “, says Sven Meyer, managing director of EPE. Founder Lars Riemenschneider adds: “DRS has extensive expertise in the development of software companies. In addition to technical support in the further refinement of our software, I am pleased that DRS will also support us in our internationalization efforts via its broad business network”.

Electric Paper Evaluationssysteme GmbH, Lueneburg/Germany, was founded in 1996 by Lars Riemenschneider. Its“EvaSys Survey Automation Suite” is a high-end software product “Made in Germany”, setting the industry standard in its segment. Reliable technology, first-class service, and customer-oriented support assure global user satisfaction. More than 20,000 users in more than 1,000 different organizations work with the EPE software daily.

Expansion of Cloud Computing, Marketing & Sales

DRS and EPE intended to expand into cloud computing, especially “Software as a Service” (SaaS). For product expansion additional funds will be made available. DRS and the management of EPE have set common aspirations of strengthening sales staff and expanding marketing efforts with the aim of covering new segments and regions.

The transaction was led by DRS founder and Managing Partner Dr. Andreas Spiegel and DRS Investment Partner Matthias Schneck, supported by DRS Operations Partner Dr. Sven Abels. The parties have agreed to not disclose transaction details.

DRS Investment GmbH acquires logistics software specialist

Software investor with first holding in Switzerland

Munich/Germany, December 12, 2018 – The private equity company DRS Investment GmbH makes the second investment in its first full financial year and acquires 100 percent of all shares of the Swiss software company XELOG AG. The logistics software specialist has been developing intralogistics solutions for companies in the retail, industrial and logistics service sectors for over 20 years, and is one of the leading providers in Switzerland. With the help of DRS Investment, XELOG intends to move deeper into the German market and expand its cloud computing business. In addition, applications with artificial intelligence (AI) will become more important.

“We are convinced that with DRS Investment we have found the right partner for the sustainable development of XELOG, and that we thoughtfully arranged the succession,” says Peter Duss, previous shareholder of XELOG. Founder Armin Töngi adds: “DRS Investment has extensive expertise in positioning software companies. In addition to technical support in the development of our software, I am pleased that DRS Investment will also support us in the internationalization process through its broad network.”

XELOG, Rotkreuz/Switzerland, was founded in 1996 by IT engineer Armin Töngi. The branch office in Dortmund/Germany was founded in 2015. XELOG designs and develops customer-specific intralogistics solutions and offers support and logistics consulting in addition to its own software products. The core product is the warehouse management system XELOG WMS. The XELOG WMS manages, controls and optimizes all processes in internal logistics. XELOG’s customers range from medium-sized companies to international corporations from different industries throughout Europe. Due to their international activities, XELOG solutions are used worldwide.

Expansion of cloud computing and artificial intelligence
With the acquisition by DRS Investment, the Cloud Computing segment in particular is to be expanded as well as the “Software as a Service” business (SaaS). XELOG will make its Warehouse Management System (WMS) available in the cloud, making it faster and more convenient at any time. In addition, logistics apps that can be added give customers a high level of flexibility. In the future, the focus will also move to solutions with AI. “AI is now omnipresent in our industry. We want to set the standard in this field and help our customers generate value from their data,” says Töngi.

DRS Investment plans further transactions in the software logistics industry
The software investor DRS Investment intends to systematically drive XELOG’s business forward by acquiring further suppliers of WMS and software companies along the supply chain. The goal is to establish a software group that will offer software services along the entire supply chain from a single source.

“Small and medium-sized companies in Germany have only digitized a small part of their business processes,” says Dr. Andreas Spiegel, Managing Partner of DRS Investment. “With XELOG’s many years of expertise, we can support companies from retail, industrial and logistics service sectors with customized solutions. To position ourselves on the market in the long term, we want to grow further through acquisitions.”

The transaction was led by DRS founder and Managing Partner Dr. Andreas Spiegel, supported by DRS partners Harald Ebrecht and Dr. Sven Abels. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.

About DRS Investment

DRS Investment GmbH is a private equity company focusing on Digital. Revolutionary. Software investments. DRS Investment was founded in 2017 by the entrepreneur and investor Dr. Andreas Spiegel with the support of other private equity investors to acquire software companies with the aim of managing and developing them in the long term. DRS Investment currently holds stakes in Ascora GmbH and XELOG AG. Regardless of the buy & build approach with XELOG, DRS Investment plans to build up a large portfolio of small to medium-sized software companies with EBIT between €1.5 million and €5.0 million. DRS Investment invests in companies with a company valuation of up to €50.0 million.

About XELOG

XELOG AG is a software and consulting company that designs, implements and supports solutions for professional warehouse management (intralogistics). The management system is certified according to DIN EN ISO 9001. XELOG is a stock company under Swiss law with headquarters in Rotkreuz near Zug. The company was founded in 1996.

More information can be found at: www.xelog.com

DRS Investment GmbH invests in software specialist Ascora

New private equity player starts with first investment in German market

Munich/Germany, 22 March 2018 – The private investment company DRS Investment acquires the software company Ascora GmbH from company founder Dr. Sven Abels. He will remain in the company as managing director and has re-invested 50 percent into the anchor investment in order to build up a software group in partnership with DRS Investment for the digitization of business processes.

Ascora specialises in consumer software, data management in cloud-based areas and digitisation services for medium-sized companies. The aim of the investment is to further develop and internationalise the company, particularly in the B2B sector.

Ascora GmbH, Ganderkesee, was founded in 1994 by the computer scientist Dr. Sven Abels. The organisation has become an established partner for the digitization of business processes and employs more than 30 software developers. Ascora currently has more than 12 million software licenses in use. This makes the company one of the German software developers with the highest reach. In addition, Ascora is consortium leader for several research projects in the areas of Industry 4.0 and eHealth (EU, BMBF).

Growth through acquisitions

With the participation of DRS Investment, the B2B activities of Ascora

will be considerably expanded. By acquiring software companies, the specialist wants to open up new business fields and become a platform for numerous applications in the B2B environment. “The software developers behind Ascora have an in-depth expertise in the area of secure data management and scaling of large data volumes,” says Dr. Andreas Spiegel, Managing Partner of DRS Investment GmbH. “Small and medium-sized enterprises in particular can benefit from this development power and thus drive forward the digitization and automation of their business processes.”

The aim of the investors is to support the further development of Ascora GmbH in the long term. Ascora founder Abels says: “With DRS Investment we have found an experienced partner who knows how to accelerate growth through acquisitions and make Ascora’s core competencies available for new business areas.”

DRS Investment GmbH was founded in 2017 by the entrepreneur and investor Dr. Andreas Spiegel with the support of other investors from the private equity sector in order to invest privately in companies and to develop them further in the long term. Spiegel (born 1974) has been working in the private equity sector for several years and has accompanied various transactions (entry and exit). He holds a doctorate in business administration and has previously worked in consulting and as managing director in various industries in Germany and abroad. Spiegel has founded several companies himself and is a specialist for growth. He and the selected group of investors contribute exclusively parts of their private capital. Currently, DRS has 10 million Euro available for direct investments, further funds remain on call. A special focus lies on technology-oriented growth enterprises.

About DRS Investment

DRS Investment GmbH, Munich, is a private investment company with currently 10 million Euro in private funds for direct investments. DRS was founded in 2017 by the entrepreneur and investor Dr. Andreas Spiegel with the support of other private equity investors with the aim of acquiring small and medium-sized companies in order to manage and develop them over the long term. A special focus lies on technology-oriented growth companies.

About Ascora

Ascora GmbH is a medium-sized, owner-managed software company with headquarter in Ganderkesee near Bremen. The company develops consumer software for Windows and Mac as well as smartphone apps and participates in various research and development projects in Germany and Europe. Since its foundation in 1994, Ascora has become an established partner for the digitization of business processes and today employs more than 30 software developers. With over 12 million users, Ascora GmbH is one of the largest providers of software solutions for consumers in Germany. Ascora received among others the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 Award and the 2018 Growth Champion Award from Focus and Statista. It was also included in Focus Business’s list of “Top SME Employers 2018.

More information can be found at: www.ascora.net