Siemens to acquire simulation software supplier CD-adapco

Siemens and CD-adapco have entered into a stock purchase agreement for the acquisition of CD-adapco by Siemens. The purchase price is $970 million. CD-adapco is a global engineering simulation company with software solutions covering a wide range of engineering disciplines including fluid dynamics (CFD), solid mechanics (CSM), heat transfer, particle dynamics, reactant flow, electrochemistry, acoustics and rheology. Last fiscal year, CD-adapco had over 900 employees and revenue of close to $200 million with software-typical, double-digit margins. On average, CD-adapco increased its revenue at constant currencies by more than 12% annually over the past three fiscal years. Siemens expects this business to continue to experience strong growth in the future.

“As part of its Vision 2020, Siemens is acquiring CD-adapco and sharpening its focus on growth in digital business and expanding its portfolio in the area of industry software. Simulation software is key to enabling customers to bring better products to the market faster and at less cost. With CD-adapco, we’re acquiring an established technology leader that will allow us to supplement our world-class industry software portfolio and deliver on our strategy to further expand our digital enterprise portfolio,” said Klaus Helmrich, member of the managing board of Siemens.

Engineering simulation provides the most reliable flow of information into the design process, which drives innovation and lowers product development costs. CD-adapco simulation tools, led by the flagship product STAR-CCM+, allow engineers to discover better designs, faster. CD-adapco now has over 3200 customers worldwide. Its software is currently used by 14 of the 15 largest carmakers, by all of the top 10 suppliers to the aerospace industry and by nine of the 10 largest manufacturers in the energy and marine sectors.

CD-adapco CEO and President Sharron MacDonald said, “I am pleased for both the employees and the customers of CD-adapco. The opportunities that come with the acquisition by Siemens are endless. The vision of our founders will be realised in the integration of these world-class engineering and manufacturing technologies and a business strategy that will allow engineering simulation to impact more products and companies than ever before.”

CD-adapco will be integrated into the PLM software business of Siemens’ Digital Factory (DF) Division.

“By adding advanced engineering simulation tools such as CFD to our portfolio and experienced experts in the field to our organisation, we’re greatly enhancing our core competencies for model-based simulation that creates a very precise digital twin of the product,” said Anton Huber, CEO of the Digital Factory Division.

The Digital Factory Division bundles all Siemens’ businesses serving the discrete manufacturing sectors — for example, car and aircraft construction, machine construction and electronics. Its portfolio includes high-performance, fully integrated software and hardware technologies for implementing seamless data-technical links between development, production and suppliers. Siemens is currently the only company offering technologies that comprehensively merge the virtual world of product development and the real world of manufacturing. New products can be designed, tested and optimised on the computer, while the corresponding production processes are already being planned and implemented. As a result, customers profit from enhanced efficiency, greater flexibility and faster market readiness.