IBM to Acquire TRIRIGA, Inc. to Accelerate Smarter Buildings Transformation

ARMONK, N.Y., March 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced a definitive agreement to acquire privately-held TRIRIGA, Inc., a Las Vegas, Nevada-based provider of facility and real estate management software solutions. The move aims to accelerate IBM's smarter buildings initiatives by adding advanced intelligence that improves real estate performance, capital project management and the outcomes of sustainability initiatives. Financial terms were not disclosed.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090416/IBMLOGO )

TRIRIGA software helps clients make strategic decisions regarding space usage, evaluate alternative real estate initiatives, generate higher returns from capital projects, and assess environmental impact investments.

Greater efficiencies around the operations and management of real estate are critical for organizations with multiple facilities.  Property and real estate typically represents the second-largest expense on a company's income statement, after employee compensation.  Facilities investments and operating costs can be more than 30 percent of corporate annual spending.  Fifty percent of the lifetime ownership costs of a facility can be driven from its ongoing operation.

IBM is working with thousands of organizations globally to optimize the energy usage and equipment efficiency in office buildings, campuses, resorts, hospitals and cities using IBM smarter buildings software, which includes analytics, automation and IBM Maximo Asset Management.

Today many facilities managers, real estate managers and C-level executives rely on separate products from multiple vendors to optimize their facility infrastructure, lease administration, utility consumption, space and occupancy, and facility condition assessment. Each product used by different departments holds silos of information, making it difficult, if not impossible, to share across different operating functions. Similarly, business processes that span multiple groups cannot easily be accomplished when those groups are using different products.

"The combination of TRIRIGA and IBM smarter building solutions will deliver the industry's most comprehensive capabilities that span the needs of all industries for managing facilities and real estate portfolios," said Florence Hudson, energy and environment executive, IBM.  "Having one view of building operations worldwide will be a powerful tool to help organizations control and optimize their second-largest corporate expense -- property."

More than 200 clients and thousands of users -- including over one-third of Fortune 100 corporations across every major industry, as well as seven of the 15 federal executive departments of the U.S. government -- use TRIRIGA software to reduce operational costs, increase return on real estate assets and mitigate environmental regulatory risks.

As a leader in the workplace management market, TRIRIGA will strengthen IBM smarter buildings solutions by adding these key functions:

• Real Estate Portfolio Management, including strategic portfolio planning and lease management --TRIRIGA allows companies to optimize building use, reduce occupancy costs and improve lease administration. TRIRIGA software helps companies evaluate future space requirements and make long term planning decisions. For example, using solutions from TRIRIGA, managers can determine future space and growth needs and choose the most financially beneficial options among lease or buy alternatives.

• Capital Project Management, such as condition assessment, budgeting, construction estimating and project management -- Effectively evaluating building condition and prioritizing investments are important in maximizing a facility's lifetime value at the lowest cost possible.  For example, managers can assess whether to replace a roof on a building versus replacing the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment by helping determine which is a better return-on-investment and assessing trade-offs in identifying investment priorities.

• Energy and Environmental Sustainability, such as monitoring utility costs and consumption, analyzing environmental investments and setting carbon management strategies -- Tracking and managing utility costs, including electricity, gas and water, is the first step companies must take in driving those costs down. For example, using TRIRIGA software, a company can monitor and track its carbon footprint and reduce greenhouse gases from underperforming facilities. Companies can evaluate the financial and environmental benefit of capital investment decisions focused on energy and environmental efficiency strategies, such as a building retrofit or updating to a more efficient HVAC system.

"Together, IBM and TRIRIGA will offer the most comprehensive facility and real estate management solution for clients around the world," said George Ahn, president and CEO of TRIRIGA.  "By combining our intellectual capital with the global reach of IBM, we can help clients dramatically improve their buildings' operations to become more sustainable and cost efficient."

TRIRIGA will be integrated into IBM Tivoli Software and IBM Global Business Services.  The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2011, subject to regulatory approval and the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.  TRIRIGA employs approximately 200 people worldwide.

The acquisition of TRIRIGA will help accelerate IBM's growth in the smarter buildings market, a key initiative in IBM's Smarter Planet work.  Earlier this month, IBM said Smarter Planet projects are estimated to drive $10 billion in revenue for IBM by 2015.

For more information, please visit http://www.ibm.com/software/tivoli/welcome/tririga

About IBM Smarter Buildings

Since launching its Smarter Buildings initiative in February 2010, IBM has created a portfolio of smarter buildings solutions that integrate with building automation software from across the industry.  IBM's real-time monitoring and analysis, facilities and space management capabilities, and advanced dynamic dashboards helps property owners and managers reduce facilities operations and energy expense, and improve asset management and reliability. For more information, visit: http://www.ibm.com/smarterplanet/us/en/green_buildings/ideas/index.html?re=sph

About TRIRIGA, Inc.

Named by foremost industry analyst firms as the leader in sustainability software and in Integrated Workplace Management Systems, TRIRIGA provides enterprise sustainability, real estate and facilities management solutions. TRIRIGA has delivered the industry's most advanced capabilities such as configurable workflow and performance analytics engines to reduce operating costs, increase return on assets and achieve sustainability goals for mid- and large-sized commercial and public enterprises, including more than one-third of the Fortune 100.

Press Contacts:

Tod Freeman
IBM Media Relations
415-320-5893
[email protected]

Michael Corrado
IBM Media Relations
914-766-4635
[email protected]

SOURCE IBM