Descartes acquires Exentra for $17 million

Descartes Systems Group of Waterloo, Ontario, has acquired Exentra Transport Solutions Ltd, a United Kingdom-based provider of software-as-a-service (SaaS) driver compliance solutions for the European Union (EU). Descartes said it paid about $17 million for Exentra, which is headquartered in Chippenham, England.

Exentra's cloud-based compliance management platform, Smartanalysis, helps truck fleet operators leverage the data from a vehicle's tachograph to comply with EU-wide legislation governing driver compliance. In the European Union, any truck weighing more than 3.5 tons is required by law to have a tachograph, a device that automatically records speed and distance as well as driver activity.

Descartes said the acquisition means that Exentra's customers will be added to Descartes' cloud-based Logistics Technology Platform, which helps more than 35,000 trading partners connect and collaborate to improve logistics operations.

Descartes said the acquisition will not only strengthens the company's investment in the UK market but also help improve its own compliance and routing applications. "The EU driver compliance legislation has been in place longer than comparable regulations in North America. In the EU, not only is every vehicle required to have tachograph hardware, but the hardware is standardized and fitted during vehicle production," said Steve Fisher, CEO of Exentra and Director of Compliance at Descartes. "Our experience strengthens Descartes' Routing, Mobile, and Telematics suite to address the U.S. regulatory environment."