Trimble Acquires Fifth Element to Expand its Global Presence in Forestry Logistics and Harvest Solutions

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Mar 10, 2015, 06:31 ET

SUNNYVALE, Calif., March 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Trimble (NASDAQ: TRMB) announced today that it has acquired privately-held Fifth Element, a leader in forestry enterprise and mobile software solutions for logistics and harvest operations. Based in Espoo, Finland, Fifth Element expands Trimble's forestry presence in Northern Europe, one of the largest forestry regions globally.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

Fifth Element provides integrated, scalable software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions to some of the largest global forestry companies. The product portfolio includes:

LogForce™ solution: An enterprise-wide planning and logistics solution designed to plan delivery of remote roadside inventory stock. Hauling companies benefit through visibility of all available roadside inventories from multiple providers enabling them to plan efficient, cost-effective delivery schedules and fulfill delivery orders consistently.
WoodForce™ solution: Will provide remote inventory location and availability data to forest management companies through integration with on-board harvesting and forwarder machine telematics, as well as human resource management through mobile inspection and planning apps. The solution is expected to be available in the third quarter of 2015.

Fifth Element addresses the challenges of tracking and delivery of remote forest inventory and creates backhaul opportunities for hauling companies to reduce costly empty travel miles. A common platform is leveraged to manage remote inventories, which allows hauling companies to provide services to many forestry companies without having to change systems.

"By adding Fifth Element solutions to Trimble's forestry portfolio, we can better address operational forestry challenges around the world," said Ken Moen, general manager for Trimble's Forestry Division. "Trimble's enterprise forest management solutions are used by some of the largest landowners and wood consumers in the world. Our fundamental focus is to provide solutions that drive integration of business data, improve efficiency and provide better visibility into forest operations to maximize productivity and profitability."

"Joining Trimble is a great opportunity. The addition of Fifth Element's solutions to Trimble's portfolio extends our collective ability to deliver more powerful and robust forestry solutions," said Jukka Sonninen, CEO and co-founder of Fifth Element. "In addition, we can leverage Trimble's international footprint to extend our global reach in the industry. As part of Trimble, the commitment to our customers remains unchanged as we continue to deliver best-in-class solutions and services."

Fifth Element complements Trimble's Connected Forest strategy through the addition of advanced logistics and harvesting solutions, which are key components in the lifecycle of a working forest. Trimble's Connected Forest enables better decision making at every step from the forest to mill, from land acquisition to product delivery, by combining industry-specialized software and state-of-the-art hardware into solutions for land, forest and fibre management. As part of the Connected Forest, Trimble's enterprise forest management solutions can help organizations analyze options and priorities, optimally allocate resources, track progress and provide sound results for management.

About Fifth Element

Fifth Element is a technology solutions provider that specializes in developing software that focus on operational work processes in selected industries. Together with forestry clients Fifth Element has leveraged its advantage of mobile technology and location information to support the industry. The company's software services enable different stakeholders in customer companies to work in new ways that benefit everyone.

For more information, visit: www.fifthelement.fi.

About Trimble's Forestry Division

Trimble's Forestry Division offers land, forest and fibre management solutions, that improve the productivity and operations for some of the world's largest integrated forest product companies, forest land owners, international food processing companies and conservation organizations as well as small and medium-sized businesses and state and federal departments involved in soil, water and biodiversity protection.

For more information, visit: www.trimble.com/forestry.

About Trimble

Trimble applies technology to make field and mobile workers in businesses and government significantly more productive. Solutions are focused on applications requiring position or location—including surveying, construction, agriculture, fleet and asset management, public safety and mapping. In addition to utilizing positioning technologies, such as GPS, lasers and optics, Trimble solutions may include software content specific to the needs of the user. Wireless technologies are utilized to deliver the solution to the user and to ensure a tight coupling of the field and the back office. Founded in 1978, Trimble is headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif.

For more information, visit: www.trimble.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding the business operations and prospects of Trimble, including the impact of the Fifth Element acquisition on creating opportunities for, and better addressing operational forestry challenges of, customers and the availability of new products. 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) Trimble's ability to combine Fifth Element's solutions with Trimble's forestry portfolio to deliver more complete and innovative solutions for forestry companies, (iii) Trimble and Fifth Element's ability to leverage Trimble's international footprint to extend the reach of the Fifth Element products more globally, 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