Cloud computing expert Onyx hits IT acquisition trail with £15m
Fast growing technology firm Onyx has its sights on acquiring more Scottish IT companies after building a £15 million war chest.
The Teesside-based business broke into Scotland in 2008 by taking over Edinburgh’s Dundas IT and Campbell Lee in Glasgow. The company is targeting further acquisitions north of the Border after ISIS Equity Partners backed a £27m management buyout of the firm in October.
Hugh Gillen, managing director of Onyx’s infrastructure division, is already running the rule over opportunities in Aberdeen but is also on the lookout for businesses in the Central Belt.
He said: “We’ll be investing heavily in expanding our cloud computing business early in the New Year. Our data centre in Edinburgh is already two-thirds full and we’ve got plans to expand our existing site in Glasgow.
“After that, we’ll be on the lookout for more takeover opportunities to help grow the business.”
Onyx has about 50 staff in Scotland – half its UK total – and generates a third of its £17m turnover north of the Border. A third of its £3m profit is generated in Scotland thanks to a number of lucrative contracts.
The firm counts sausage-skin maker Devro, Robert Wiseman Dairies, law firm Harper Macleod, haulier Eddie Stobbart and the Scottish Friendly Assurance among its clients.
The group competes directly with indigenous Scottish firms such as Inchinnan-based Amor Group and Aim-quoted Iomart, which have also been expanding.
IT companies have benefited from the move to “cloud computing” – instead of storing programs and data on individual terminals in an office, cloud computing allows users to access information on any machine via the internet.
But Gillen says that cloud computing isn’t for everyone. “About one in four of our customers are looking at cloud computing but it’s not a case of one-size fits all.
“Many work in highly regulated areas in which the information they store needs to be secured, but others could use public cloud computing networks in order to cut costs,” he said.
As well as its data centres in Edinburgh and Glasgow, the firm also has “workplace recovery centres” in both cities.
Glasgow-based Iomart has also reaped the benefits of owning its own data centres – in the six months to 30 September, profits doubled to £2.4m on the back of a 36 per cent rise in revenue to £15.4m.
