Phoenix Contact takes over industrial communication technology specialist

Phoenix Contact has taken over the Taiwanese company Etherwan System Inc. The company, located in New-Taipei, is a manufacturer of Ethernet communication technology for automation. The takeover boosts the position of the Phoenix Contact Group in the area of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and Industry 4.0, which was already strengthened by the takeover of the Canadian Perle Systems Inc. in 2016.

Etherwan was founded in California in 1996. The main site with 170 employees has been in New-Taipei in Taiwan for 20 years, manufacturing hardware components such as media converters and Ethernet switches. Software is also included in the portfolio of the company. The US headquarters is located in Anaheim, CA, where more than 20 people are employed.

Phoenix Contact and Etherwan have already been cooperating successfully for 15 years. The cooperation started with the development of a portfolio of Industrial Ethernet products. This successful cooperation will now be intensified in the joint undertaking in order to launch further product ranges to take advantage of the opportunities presented by Industry 4.0 and to further develop the competence in network technology for the Phoenix Contact Group.

“Industrial communication is a key technology for digitalisation,” said Roland Bent, CTO of Phoenix Contact. “Etherwan and Phoenix Contact complement each other perfectly with their different strengths in different markets and different industries. Now we have achieved a global appearance and product portfolio to effectively conquer further markets.”

The corporate name remains unchanged; the same applies to the sites. In Taiwan, the close proximity to chip manufacturers, technology suppliers and other manufacturers is a great advantage. The existing supervisory board will be extended by Jack Nehlig, President of Phoenix Contact Inc., Harrisburg, USA and Martin Mueller, Vice President of the I/O and Networks business unit at Phoenix Contact, as well as Marcus Boeker, Head of Acquisitions at Phoenix Contact.

The transaction is subject to approval by the local Investment Commission of Taiwan.