In this Research Note, we examine the acquisition of German building automation firm, DEOS AG by Regin AB, a Swedish HVAC products firm, announced on 31^st May 2022.

DEOS AG becomes a part of the Regin Group with a separate product line under the DEOSbrand name. With this transaction, the Regin group strengthens its market positions in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

“The acquisition of DEOS AG is an important step of our journey to become a European market leader in our niche of the building automation and control systems market. Our customer centric approach, shared passion for innovative energy saving solutions in combination with our talented teams is a perfect match”, says Fredrik Wiking, CEO & President Regin Group.

Founded in 1947, Regin, headquartered in Kållered, Sweden, positions itself as the building automation challenger.  The group offers complete Building Energy Management Systems and hardware as well as solutions based on intelligent controls, sensors and field products for facility owners, system integrator partners and OEM customers.

Building automation solutions from Regin are distributed in more than 90 countries worldwide while the group has subsidiaries in 11 countries in Scandinavia, Europe and Asia providing local expertise. Their products are primarily developed at the Regin innovation center in Lund, Sweden, which was opened in May 2021.  The group consists of approximately 300 employees. 2020 group revenue was reported as 485.86 million SEK (approximately €46 million), a 4% decline compared to 2019. 

DEOS AG, headquartered in Rheine, Germany, positions itself as “the expert in the automation and digitization of non-residential buildings”. Founded by Stefan Plüth in 1967, DEOS focuses on the integration and interaction of technical systems to achieve interoperability, to ensure the energy-efficient operation of the building to reduce costs and thus ultimately to achieve the desired increase in comfort for the users. The company offers freely programmable controllers with all relevant communication protocols, Cloud/IoT & cyber security solutions, SMD manufacturing and software development capacities – made in Germany. Their customers include banks, cities & municipalities, public institutions, office operators, hotels and hospitals. DEOS AG is represented at 12 locations in 8 countries, with approximately 200 employees and more than 300 system partners.

The DEOS press release highlighted the fact that the systems integration business in Switzerland was not part of the Regin transaction and will be acquired by Stefan Plüth who will in addition continue as an independent distributor of DEOS products in the Middle East.

Both major players and small firms in the building automation sector have been acquiring hardware and software products as well as investing in systems integration and facilities management capabilities to expand their offerings.

Recent examples in the European market include:

• Sauter advances growth strategy in facility management services.
• Bosch Building Technologies announced German expansion plans in January 2022 to acquire Hoerburger AG.
• Viessmann completed a strategic investment in Priva, the second-tier Dutch manufacturer of building management systems.
• Bemsiq grows its building automation field devices business to over $100m.
• Spica Technologies was acquired by Scandinavian smart building systems integrator Nordomatic.
• Controlli Spa, the Italian-based valves and actuators manufacturer and Global Control 5 SA, a Polish building automation manufacturer, merge under the iSMA Controlli brand.

With smaller firms such as DEOS and Regin merging their businesses to gain critical mass, the European building automation market is seeing further evidence of consolidation. 

This article was written by Daphne Tomlinson, Senior Research Associate at Memoori.