PORTEC Rail Products Inc announced on July 21 that it is to acquire 100% of the outstanding shares of Salient Systems for a combination of stock and cash, valued at $12·4m to $14·0m, depending upon Portec Rail’s stock price prior to closing.

The deal includes an earn-out provision for 2004-06 and a working capital adjustment. The merger was approved by both boards, and will be completed during September subject to the approval of Salient Systems shareholders.

Portec Rail supplies friction management products, and the acquisition will expand its range of services to cover electronic wayside data collection and asset data management software.

In the year to December 31 2003 Portec Rail had net sales of $57·6m and income of $3·4m. Salient System’s net sales were $4·6m, a 180% increase on the prior three-year average, while net income was $1·1m.

Topics