Enterprise software company QAD Inc. has acquired Redzone, the leading connected workforce platform for manufacturing, for approximately $1 billion.
The transaction is the second for Thoma Bravo-owned QAD since December, when it acquired Livejourney, a provider of a real-time process mining and predictive modeling designed to discover, monitor, and improve business processes. Redzone’s solutions aim to create a better employee experience for frontline teams, offering them digital workflows and collaboration tools.
“As we assessed the market for the category leader, it was evident that not only is Redzone the #1 provider globally but also the pioneer of the category and the one who continues to define it,” QAD Chief Executive Officer Anton Chilton said in a statement. “And the company’s financial performance speaks to its market leadership: profitable since inception, SaaS revenues growing 35% organically, and a clear path to being the first connected workforce solution in manufacturing to achieve $100 million revenue run rate this year.”
Redzone, which serves more than 1,000 plants and 300,000 workers, received a growth equity investment from Summit Partners in 2020 and has continued to perform well since, with bookings growing 46% in 2022. Global manufacturers that use the technology include Nestlé, Post Holdings, and Tyson.
The acquisition will further QAD’s Adaptive Applications product by helping customers drive rapid, tangible increases in empowerment, retention, and productivity on the frontline. Adaptive software is meant to respond to disruptions in supply and demand, giving workers tools for staying efficient and resilient as they contend with such obstacles as rising input costs and labor shortages.
Redzone has been the leader in the food and beverage and CPG industry and has recently expanded into the automotive, life sciences, and discrete manufacturing verticals.
“We have always put the frontline worker at the heart of our technology and know that arming these teams with the right digital workflows is the fastest way to unlock productivity on the plant floor,” Redzone Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder Richard Tester said in a statement.
