Exertis acquires storage distribution specialist Hammer

DCC Technology, trading as Exertis, is acquiring server and storage distribution specialist Hammer for around £38 million.

The acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of December 2016. Based in Basingstoke, Hampshire and employing 165 people, Hammer distributes server and storage products for a broad range of suppliers, including Dell, Intel, NetApp, Seagate and Western Digital.

In addition, it provides product design and build solutions tailored to the requirements of customers in specific industries.

Hammer sells to VARs, cloud service providers and system integrators from sales offices in the UK, France, Germany, Sweden, Holland and Belgium.

Hammer’s business is complementary to Exertis’ existing server and storage business, “significantly strengthening Exertis’ supplier portfolio” and adding almost 1,000 reseller customers, said Ireland-headquartered DCC.

In its financial year ended 31 January 2016, Hammer earned an operating profit of £6.3 million on revenue of £155 million.

DCC has agreed to acquire 100 percent of the issued share capital of Hammer based on an initial enterprise value of £38.3 million. The deal will be settled entirely in cash and is structured as an initial payment at completion, followed by earn out payments over three years based on Hammer’s future trading results.

Tommy Breen, chief executive of DCC plc, said: “The acquisition of Hammer will significantly strengthen the product and service capability offered by Exertis to its reseller customers. In addition, Hammer’s expertise will better enable us to take advantage of positive industry trends, including growth in cloud data centres and demand for big data analytics.”

DCC has four divisions – DCC Energy, DCC Healthcare, DCC Technology and DCC Environmental. DCC Technology and Exertis owns Computers Unlimited, along with other UK channel firms recently acquired.

@AntonySavvas