Trimble to Acquire Müller-Elektronik to Extend its Precision Agriculture Capabilities from the Vehicle to the Implement

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May 24, 2017, 09:05 ET

SUNNYVALE, Calif., May 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Trimble (NASDAQ: TRMB) announced today that it has signed an agreement to acquire privately-held Müller-Elektronik, a German company specializing in implement control and precision farming solutions. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2017, subject to customary closing conditions and clearance or expiration of the waiting period under the German Act Against Restraints of Competition. Financial terms were not disclosed.

With more than 375 employees, Müller is a pioneer in precision farming, known for developing, producing and selling Electronic Control Units (ECUs) and embedded software that provides vehicle and implement control for tractors, combine harvesters, field sprayers, drill machines, seeders, spreaders and slurry tankers to improve the management of inputs such as seed, fertilizer and pesticides. Müller was a key contributor in the development of the ISOBUS communication protocol, which allows one terminal to control several implements and machines, regardless of manufacturer. ISOBUS standardizes the control settings, reduces downtime and minimizes installation and interface challenges, simplifying data exchange and machine control. The implement control solutions developed by Müller have now become widely adopted by leading agriculture OEMs and aftermarket channels.

Combining the technology and strengths of Trimble and Müller will enable the development of new and exciting solutions for farmers worldwide, who often struggle to integrate and use disparate hardware and software products across various brands of agricultural equipment. The addition of Müller-Elektronik will enable the creation of an ecosystem where farmers, advisors and retailers can easily build field prescriptions and transfer that prescription to the implement, enabling farmers to more easily adopt precision agriculture solutions.

"Our planned acquisition of Müller-Elektronik recognizes the growing importance of the implement in variable rate application solutions as well as the importance of an integrated platform that is agnostic to equipment brand," said Darryl Matthews, Trimble senior vice president. "Müller's ISOBUS solutions are already compatible with a significant range of equipment manufacturers. This capability, together with existing Trimble competencies, will enable us to expand our role in the growing market for variable rate applications. We plan to continue to fully support existing Müller customers and partners."

"Trimble is a leading provider of precision agriculture hardware and farm management software. Bringing Trimble together with Müller's leading ISOBUS solutions will create an industry-changing opportunity to deliver a system-wide integration that is uniquely available through the combination of the companies," said Christian Müller, managing director for Müller-Elektronik. "Our systems, combined with farm management software, will enable OEMs to provide integrated plug-and-play solutions straight from the factory, while also helping the growing aftermarket channel looking to support its customers with mixed fleet operations with an ISOBUS solution."

The acquisition of Müller-Elektronik will include the company's other operations, WTK Elektronik, a German-based company, ME-France, ME Sudamerica, an Argentina-based company, and Mueller Electronics Inc., a North American-based company. The Müller-Elektronik businesses will be reported as part of Trimble's Resources and Utilities Segment.

About Müller-Elektronik

Müller-Elektronik GmbH & Co. KG, founded in 1977 and based in Salzkotten, Germany, is a pioneer and leader in the development, production and sales of electronic solutions for agricultural machinery. For more than 40 years, the family-run company has been a leader in agricultural electronics with ground-breaking innovations, setting the pace with ISOBUS hardware and software solutions. With personal commitment, innovative spirit, flexibility and a focus on quality, Müller-Elektronik develops award-winning solutions for OEM, aftermarket, retail and end customers.

For more information, visit: https://www.mueller-elektronik.de/en.

About Trimble's Agriculture Division

Trimble's Agriculture Division provides solutions that solve complex technology challenges across the entire agricultural supply chain. The solutions enable farmers and advisors to allocate scarce resources to produce a safe, reliable food supply in a profitable and environmentally sustainable manner. Covering all seasons, crops, terrains and farm sizes, Trimble solutions can be used on most equipment on the farm, regardless of manufacturer. To enable better decision making, Trimble offers technology integration that allows farmers to collect, share, and manage information across their farm, while providing improved operating efficiencies in the agricultural value chain. Trimble solutions include guidance and steering, agronomy coaching, desktop and cloud-based data management, flow and application control, water management, harvest solutions and correction services.

For more information on Trimble Agriculture, visit: www.trimble.com/agriculture.

About Trimble

Trimble is transforming the way the world works by delivering products and services that connect the physical and digital worlds. Core technologies in positioning, modeling, connectivity and data analytics enable customers to improve productivity, quality, safety and sustainability. From purpose built products to enterprise lifecycle solutions, Trimble software, hardware and services are transforming a broad range of industries such as agriculture, construction, geospatial and transportation and logistics. For more information on Trimble, visit: www.trimble.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding the business operations and prospects of Trimble, including the timing for the closing of the Müller-Electronik acquisition and the impacts of the acquisition on expanding Trimble's precision agriculture capabilities. These forward-looking statements are subject to change, and actual results may materially differ due to certain risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause or contribute to changes in such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to (i) realizing the anticipated benefits of the acquisition, (ii) the ability to combine the technologies and strengths of Trimble and Müller-Electronik, and develop new and compelling solutions that can be adopted by farmers worldwide, (iii) the growth prospects for variable rate applications, extent to which the ISOBUS standard is adopted worldwide, and Trimble's ability to expand its Agriculture business through the acquisition, and (iv) the risks and uncertainties associated with unexpected expenditures or assumed liabilities that may be incurred as a result of the acquisition. More information about potential factors which could affect Trimble's business and financial results is set forth in reports filed with the SEC, including Trimble's quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and its annual report on Form 10-K. All forward-looking statements are based on information available to Trimble as of the date hereof, and Trimble assumes no obligation to update such statements.

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SOURCE Trimble