NNIT Strengthens Production IT Solutions With the Acquisition of Irish-Based SL Controls

NNIT and SL Controls have agreed to join forces. SL Controls will further strengthen NNIT’s solutions within Production IT and is yet another step towards consolidating the NNIT Group as one of the foremost suppliers of IT services to the global life sciences industry.

‘We are excited to welcome SL Controls and their unique experience and expert knowledge of life sciences manufacturing onboard. The acquisition is yet another important milestone in our strategy to grow NNIT Life Sciences internationally.’

‘At the same time, we are delivering on our promise to strengthen further and grow our portfolio of IT services and solutions to the benefit of our customers. SL Controls will play an important role in securing our leading global position,’ says Ricco Larsen, Senior VP of NNIT Life Sciences, and Rasmus Nelund, Corporate VP of Life Sciences, Customer Success supplements.

‘We have already shown that we can successfully acquire IT companies within the life sciences segment and quickly leverage the joint synergies – in this case enriching our production IT and supply chain services and now offering end-to-end services.’

NNIT will acquire 100% of the shares of SL Controls Limited for an upfront payment of EUR 12.7 million before adjustments. Further, the agreement consists of an earn-out element, to be realised at the end of 2023, EUR 4.2 million at target, depending on performance.

Initially, SL Controls will join the NNIT Group as an independent company and brand in the same way as SCALES Group, Valiance Partners, and Excellis Health Solutions. In due course, the plan is to fully integrate SL Controls with NNIT A/S (similar to the acquisition and integration of Halfmann Goetsch Partner AG in 2019).

Further bolstering NNIT’s Production IT solutions

The combination of NNIT’s Production IT solutions unit, Excellis Health Solutions, and now SL Controls enables NNIT to offer customers the full range of IT services to support the entire pharmaceutical supply chain – from the implementation of a Manufacturing Execution System (MES), over the efficient integration and validation of production equipment systems, and to packaging and delivery, including Track & Trace.

Pharmaceutical production is one of the most important life sciences industry growth areas with an annual growth rate of approx—14%. Correspondingly, Production IT is one of NNIT’s strategic Winning Solutions based on our strong customer understanding and proven concepts. Over the last three years, NNIT Life Sciences has demonstrated an annual international growth rate of more than 40%.

SL Controls is internationally recognised as an industry leader in equipment systems integration and system support and has strong relationships with some of the world’s largest pharmaceutical and medical device companies. Both SL Controls and NNIT share an uncompromising focus on quality and compliance to support the highly regulated life sciences industry.

SL Controls CEO Keith Moran commented: ‘SL Controls is excited to join a group of companies with a shared vision of excellence in service delivery in the life sciences industry. It’s an exciting time for SL Controls and its excellent staff, who have supported its growth over the last 19 years. Joining forces with NNIT will further enhance our service offering to meet our customers’ global requirements for fully integrated solutions across the operational and information technology layers.’

‘In the ever-evolving, fast-paced life sciences sector, digital transformation is critical in meeting our customers’ global supply demands for life-enhancing pharmaceutical and medical device products. Today, joining the NNIT Group will allow us to continue our journey to grow globally further and to provide enhanced services to our customers as well as exciting career opportunities for our staff.’