GE business unit, Current, has purchased Melbourne-based technology startup, Daintree Networks for $100 million in its first global acquisition since its launch in October last year.
Under the deal, Current said it would integrate around 60 Daintree staff in Australia, California and Massachusetts in the United States.
GE said the acquisition will enable Current to expand its building automation platform and ‘energy-as-a-service’ offering to SMEs through the deployment of Daintree’s wireless control systems.
Daintree’s ControlScope wireless control solution will be integrated with Current’s building automation products. The joint solution links data from lighting and HVAC systems directly to Predix, GE’s industrial internet software platform.
John Gordon, global chief digital officer at Current, told CIO Australia, that there’s a shift from energy being just a cost of doing business to a distributed ‘nervous system for business.’
In February, Current announced a contract with JPMorgan Chase & Co to install LED lighting at around 5,000 branches across the United States, spanning 25 million square feet. It’s the world’s largest single-order LED installation to date.
Current claims that the project, when completed, could reduce the company’s lighting energy use by more than 50 per cent. This is equal to taking around 27,000 cars off the road.
The company also recently signed an agreement with Capgemini, which will see more than 200 developers develop software to reduce power consumption and generate onsite power by using sensors and networked systems in buildings and cities.
“When you start putting in infrastructure, whether it’s LEDs or solar power, or onsite generation – finding ways to help put this infrastructure in place is phase one of our approach,” said Gordon.
“The second phase – once they have efficient and controllable infrastructure – is how do we help them optimise it? We want to give people all the power that they need to execute their business as effectively as possible and not one kilowatt more,” he said.
Derek Proudian, CEO at Daintree Networks, said the organisation has been in the industrial internet space for a long time and the integration between both companies’ products will help customers achieve greater control, lower maintenance costs, and increased operational efficiencies.
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