Altron's wholly-owned subsidiary, Altech Netstar, has acquired 100% of the shareholding of Fleet Logistics, an Australian fleet management business based in New South Wales.
Altron says this is part of the group's strategy to strengthen its position in international markets.
Fleet Logistics trades as EZY2C and specialises in fleet management solutions for local government, the car rental industry, and commercial customers. This is the second Australian acquisition by the JSE-listed group in the past two years.
Altron CEO Mteto Nyati says the acquisition will add to Altech Netstar's rapidly growing subscriber base in Australia and propels Altech Netstar as a dominant competitor in the fleet management industry in Australia, with an installed base of over 40 000 vehicles.
"In 2015, we acquired Pinpoint Communications in the Australian market. That acquisition helped Altech Netstar to leapfrog competitors in the fleet management and telematics space. Their strong research and development capabilities continue to provide the group with technology advantage. Altech Netstar is gaining share in fleet management and delivered a solid performance in our last financial year," he says.
Pinpoint Communications has more than 15 years of experience in offering services such as vehicle telematics; asset, fleet and works management; driver and personnel identification; and certified telematics.
"The EZY2C acquisition gives us scale in a market that is highly fragmented. It also extends our presence into new territories previously not covered by Pinpoint Communications. The combined operations will better serve both enterprise and government customers," Nyati adds.
Altech Netstar MD Harry Louw says the company has been working on this transaction for some time in the knowledge it would provide Altech Netstar with a dominant foothold in Australia's local government market.
"Combining EZY2C solutions with Altech Netstar's wide range of solutions and low-cost products will enable us to aggressively grow our business in Australia.
"I am also delighted the joint managing directors of EZY2C, Evan Penn and Rick Firth, will be staying on in the business. This will enable us to develop the synergies that Altech Netstar's large footprint in Australia will bring to EZY2C," Louw concludes.
Share