The founding shareholders of acam-messelectronic GmbH (“acam”), a leading company in the development and production of measurement components based on TDC (time-to-digital conversion) technology, have sold the company to the listed group ams AG (SIX: AMS), headquartered in Austria.
Livingstone Germany’s Industrial team exclusively advised the shareholders of acam as M&A advisor on the sale of the company. Founded in 1997, acam has become one of the world’s leading developers of high-precision time measurement components. The company generates revenues of several million euros with high profitability and employs 25 people.
acam is a pioneer in the development and production of sensor integrated circuits (ICs) based on time-to-digital converters for industrial applications (weighing technology, ultrasonic flow measurement), automotive applications (turbocharger test benches), medical technology (PET scanners), and consumer electronics. The components developed by acam are distinguished by extremely high precision, low power consumption, and minimal footprint.
Livingstone Partners was mandated to identify potential strategic buyers in the high-performance sensor space through a targeted process. The selected buyer, ams AG, is a global leader in high-performance sensor solutions and analog ICs. Leveraging its global distribution network and the ability to integrate acam’s technology into future products, ams will be able to accelerate the company’s growth. In addition, ams has its own integrated circuit manufacturing capabilities (fabs), which can be used to produce future acam products. The founders will continue to lead the development of the TDC-based sensor business together with ams, and the Stutensee site will be further expanded for this purpose.
Thomas Stockmeier, COO of ams AG, stated: “We are very pleased to have successfully completed the acquisition of acam, which stands out in several markets due to its unique characteristics and is recognized as a technology leader.”
Augustin Braun, founder of acam, added: “Today marks the beginning of a new era for us. In collaboration with ams AG, we now have the opportunity to access new markets and apply our technology on a broader scale.”
Andreas Larsch, co-founder of acam, commented: “We see significant synergy potential with ams AG and are convinced that, as part of the group, we will be able to realize excellent growth opportunities in the coming years. We are grateful to have had an extremely professional advisor such as Livingstone Partners at our side, who managed the project work and negotiations with ams with great expertise and commitment. Their work laid the foundation for the integration process that begins today.”
Dr. Ralf Nowak, Managing Partner of Livingstone Düsseldorf, concluded: “In our view, this transaction is a perfect example of industrial logic: the buyer acquires a highly valuable technology and specialized know-how to which it previously had no access, while the sellers are able to further unlock their potential through a broader sales network, new contacts, and the joint development of innovative products.”
