Motorola acquires Airbus's North America business

Motorola Solutions has reached an agreement with Airbus SE to acquire Plant Holdings, which is the legal entity that holds the Airbus DS Communications business in North America.

The deal will see Motorola boost its 911 capabilities, particularly through Airbus’s command centre software for emergency call handling, known as the VESTA suite.

VESTA operates on a flexible, open software architecture. In addition to emergency call handling, it delivers text-to-911, mapping, data management and analytics. Airbus promotes it as providing public safety customers with a comprehensive transition strategy from legacy systems to a standards-based, unified Next-Generation 911 system.

The acquisition gives Motorola’s a full suite of emergency call solutions, including call routing, call taking, records management and dispatch, for agencies of all sizes across segments.

“Our acquisition of Airbus DS Communications will add complementary products and services to our software portfolio, helping us meet the needs of a broader customer base and putting us at the forefront of Next-Generation 911 technology,” said Bruce Brda, executive vice president, Products & Solutions, Motorola Solutions.

“We’re pleased to add these new capabilities to our software enterprise, created earlier this year to develop and deliver integrated software solutions that provide critical intelligence and improve operational efficiency for public safety agencies.”

According to Airbus, the agreement is part of the portfolio reshaping within the Airbus Defence and Space Division first announced in September 2014.

Airbus generated revenues of more than US$100 million in North America in 2016.

The acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of the year, subject to customary closing conditions such as regulatory approvals.

Image courtesy Motorola Solutions.

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