Universal Electronics (UEI), a manufacturer of smart-home controllers and sensing technology, will acquire Residential Control Systems for $9 million.
Residential Control Systems, also known as RCS Technology, supplies energy management and control products to the residential, commercial and hospitality markets. It is also a leading supplier of smart thermostats to OEMs, including ADT and Nexia Home Automation Systems.
The deal is designed to strengthen UEI’s place in the IoT market, growing its portfolio of home sensing, monitoring and control solutions to include smart thermostats, advanced HVAC controls, energy monitoring and control devices, gateways, in-home displays and user interfaces.
The $9 million purchase of RCS’s assets will be in cash plus incentive-based cash consideration to be paid over the next five years. Acquired assets include product lines, inventory, intellectual property, engineering and development resources, sales and distribution relationships, and other assets used in its communication and smart thermostat business. UEI said it will operate the acquired business as a wholly owned subsidiary and market the energy monitoring, thermostat, sensor products and services under RCS brands and its trademarks.
“RCS represents another important step toward our goal to be the leader in control and sensing technologies for the smart home,” said Paul Arling, UEI’s chairman and CEO. “This acquisition builds on our existing business with original equipment manufacturers in HVAC, giving us an expanded capability in delivering traditional and wireless thermostats, room air controllers, and wireless remotes to customers such as Daikin, Fujitsu and Panasonic. The addition of RCS brings new smart thermostat, sensing and monitoring products to our international market through our global sales, manufacturing, and distribution channels.”
“Our growth has been driven largely by a focus on quick development for accelerated time to market, using local, responsive engineering design and production teams, as well as a broad product portfolio including Z-Wave, ZigBee and Wi-Fi technologies,” said Michael Kuhlmann, RCS president and CEO. “UEI’s leadership position in its current markets, as well as its global development and manufacturing footprint, will give us the leverage we need to build market share in a growing and exciting segment of the IoT space.”
