Daifuku to acquire BCS Group Limited

Daifuku Co. recently announced that it has entered into an agreement to purchase an 80% of the total number of outstanding shares of BCS Group Limited (headquartered in Auckland, New Zealand, pursuant to the resolution passed at a meeting of the board of directors held on October 30, 2014. Under the agreement, BCS will operate as a subsidiary of Daifuku.

The Daifuku Group positions the airport baggage handling business as one of its core businesses. The airport baggage handling business is operated mainly by two Group companies; Jervis B. Webb Company (headquartered in the U.S.), operating mostly in North America, and Daifuku Logan Ltd. (headquartered in the United Kingdom), operating mostly in Europe. The company seeks to expand this business by increasing orders and profitability through proposal-based marketing, cost reduction in production and procurement, and comprehensive project management. Meanwhile, BCS was highlighted as a company that would be an ideal partner in the airport baggage handling business in terms of sales territory, customer base, and products. Daifuku has negotiated the transfer of BCS’s shares to expand and enhance its business in an efficient manner.

BCS, Oceania’s leading company in the airport baggage handling sector, has expanded its business into rapidly developing Southeast Asia. BCS customers include some of the world’s leading airlines and airports, and the growth of low cost airlines in Asia has contributed significantly to the company’s growth. BCS employs about 400 staff across its group sites, which include six countries mainly in Oceania and Southeast Asia. BCS features a significant network in the aviation sector and high capabilities in system integration. In addition, BCS is a developer of a revolutionary 3D software package, with three functions enabling virtual airport simulation, operational analysis and complete pre-installation testing of low- and high-level control systems via virtual commissioning, and operations via 3D SCADA. With its IT solution-based marketing, BCS differentiates itself from the competition. Making effective use of these products in seeking orders, installations, and operations/maintenance after delivery, BCS has achieved positive results. The BAGgate system for baggage self-service check-ins, developed by BCS, is used by several airports and provides significant opportunity for future growth.

With BCS joining Daifuku, growth is expected in the Asian market, where the Group has few installation records and the increased demand for airport construction is estimated. By integrating BCS’s capabilities in marketing and software development with Jervis B. Webb and Daifuku Logan, Daifuku will expand its global sales in the airport baggage handling business and enhance differentiation from its competitors.

In addition, BCS has expanded its business into the integration of automated sortation systems for parcel delivery centers, which are rapidly growing in Oceania and Southeast Asia, and has already delivered large systems to major companies in Australia. The Group’s Factory and Distribution Automation Operations, which sells automated warehouses and picking systems for distribution centers, will also collaborate with BCS.