IFS Acquires Copperleaf for CAD$1 Billion, Expanding EAM and Financial Planning Capabilities

IFS completes Copperleaf acquisition, extending EAM into the realms of financial planning

Enterprise applications vendor IFS closed its latest acquisition yesterday, sealing a CAD $1 billion (USD $742 bn) purchase of Copperleaf, which provides asset investment planning software. This is the second acquisition so far this year by IFS, which bought EmpowerMX, an aviation maintenance software provider, in July, and follows another two acquisitions last year. Speaking to diginomica, Mark Moffat, CEO of IFS, says that acquisitions will continue at a pace of two to three a year as the vendor builds out its capabilities: We're always looking at acquisition targets, both from a geo perspective, in terms of extending our reach within our chosen markets, in our industries, and extending our solution footprint, critically to retain our focus on asset- and service-centricity. Where we see high-quality businesses with big growth potential that we can be synergistic with, that are in our target industries, in our chosen geos, that extend our customer solution for the benefit of our customers, then those are the ones that we proceed with. The Copperleaf acquisition extends IFS's existing strength in Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) to encompass financial planning for capital spend on those assets. Moffat explains: Historically, we've had massive breadth in helping customers manage asset portfolio, whether that be through production routines, whether it be through scheduling, whether it be through maintenance, whether it be through after-sales service, What we didn't have is that upfront piece. That takes us into the office of the CFO. It takes us into the corporate dev teams. It takes us into strategic planning. Copperleaf's global customer base is concentrated among utility companies in the water and energy sector and in transportation industries. The product is a highly specialized financial planning and analysis solution that allows companies to weigh up plans for capital spending according to various priorities, from improving operating margins to achieving sustainability goals. Moffat elaborates: They help companies that are asset-intensive, with big capital demands, to make trade-off decisions. They literally will be able to look at the asset portfolio, look at the aging nature of that portfolio, to look at the rare capital they have, and to allocate it based on a given set of criteria. That criteria could include everything from financial return to carbon reduction, and their value framework associates a common way to assess that wide range of variables. So you can look at allocating your capital on something that's going to give you significant financial return, against something that will give you less of a financial return, but it'll meet your carbon reduction goals. For example, National Grid, the UK's main operator of electricity and gas transmission, which also operates in the US north-east, has used Copperleaf to manage ageing critical infrastructure while moving forward with the transition to renewables energy. This has produced predicted savings on maintenance cost of £4.4 million (USD $5.8m) over a five-year period, while the associated reductions in network outages are estimated to be worth £2.5 million (USD $3.3m) annually. Moffat says that Copperleaf talks about "the ability to compare apples with elephants," allowing customers to examine the impact of different types of capital spend on a diverse range of metrics, even including the impact of carbon reduction on cost of capital, in cases where that may open up a lower cost of borrowing. He adds: When you're thinking about capital and all the given range of things -- changing a telephone system, doing a redecoration of a building, all the way through to, if it's an oil and gas company, building a massive refinery, they can help you make those trade-off decisions. Prior to adopting Copperleaf, customers have typically been using spreadsheets or internally customized FP&A solutions to attempt to make these decisions. The platform helps businesses implement a value framework for assessing decisions, and applies AI to help optimize capital allocation while managing risk. Once in place, customers don't look back -- the vendor boasts a 100% customer retention record. Earlier this year, the acquisition of EmpowerMX consolidated IFS's existing presence in Maintenance Repair and Operations (MRO) for the aerospace and defense industries. EmpowerMX customers include the major airlines American Airlines and Delta, along with manufacturer Embraer and aviation maintenance company MRO Holdings. IFS already serves Southwest Airlines, Air France KLM, Lockheed Martin and BAE Systems, among others. A common feature of both of this year's acquisitions are the AI capabilities each company brings to IFS. Moffat says that this is becoming a key theme for the vendor, which he believes complements its focus on managing and servicing physical assets. He tells us: We want to be the de-facto standard for industrial AI. What do we mean by industrial AI? Yes, we mean generative AI, but we mean all the other AI that's been available for a very long time -- algorithmic, machine-based learning, anomaly detection, predictive analytics, all of that heavy compute that help businesses run tighter operations, improve productivity, increase uptime, reduce maintenance load, et cetera. We want to be about industrial AI, and we can only really do that, I think, through having invested for such a long period in asset management and service management. The more traditional forms of AI are well suited to the highly structured data analysis required for tasks such as scheduling and provisioning, while last year's acquisition of Falkonry AI added AI-based anomaly detection. Generative AI will have more of a frontline role with workers out on the job, some of whom may use the Poka connected worker app that was last year's other acquisition. Moffat gives an example of an engineer out in the field who needs some ad-hoc help at the point of service delivery: They're up a telegraph pole doing a fix, and they see something, and they whip the phone out, and they take a picture, and it's uploaded, and that's assessed, and they get something back that tells them, perhaps in natural language, in audio, what they think is wrong and what the fix is. So it's the last mile. IFS continues to find acquisition targets that round out its offerings, while staying focused on its established strengths. In particular, its decision to continue building out its EAM solutions -- along with its acquisition of EAM vendor Ultimo in 2022 -- is looking increasingly astute at a time when other vendors have pulled away from EAM. When I asked then CEO Darren Roos about this last year, he saw the combination of EAM with field service maintenance and core ERP as a unique offering at a time when predictive maintenance was becoming more important. Moffat, who picked up the CEO reins at the beginning of this year, believes that the need to monitor and reduce carbon emissions makes this even more of a growth area in the industries IFS serves. He says:

IFS acquires Copperleaf in CAN$1bl deal

This content is provided by an external author without editing by Finextra. It expresses the views and opinions of the author. IFS aims to extend Copperleaf's advanced capital investment planning solutions into new markets and geographies, leveraging IFS's global infrastructure and expertise. By pairing with Copperleaf, IFS expands its already industry-leading asset management capabilities, further advancing its position as the most comprehensive end-to-end asset lifecycle management solution on the market. This combination not only enhances operational efficiency but also aligns with IFS's Moment of Service™ commitment -- ensuring unparalleled value for customers throughout the entire asset lifecycle. Copperleaf's technology empowers businesses with significant capital investments to revolutionise their decision-making processes. Through advanced decision analytics, Copperleaf enables organisations to optimise capital allocation, manage risk, and drive more precise, data-driven business decisions. In an increasingly data-centric environment, Copperleaf's solutions provide a competitive edge by helping companies prioritise high-impact investments, adapt to changing regulatory and market conditions, and align with sustainability goals. IFS plans to leverage its powerful IFS.ai architecture to enhance Copperleaf's existing asset investment planning capabilities. Already managing over $2.9 trillion in assets globally, Copperleaf has demonstrated remarkable success, with every customer recovering their investment within the first planning cycle, contributing to a 100% customer retention rate. For example, Network Rail uses Copperleaf Decision Analytics to integrate diverse assets, such as tracks and telecoms infrastructure, into a unified platform for long-term investment planning. Copperleaf's technology enables Network Rail to optimise its £1 billion annual signaling budget by making outcome-based decisions that demonstrate the value of capital investments. Major energy companies, including Exelon and National Grid, are exploring how Copperleaf's solutions can safeguard their operations while optimising performance and efficiency. National Grid is using Copperleaf to support the UK's renewable energy transition and manage aging critical infrastructure, resulting in reduced maintenance costs and improved reliability, with savings of £4.4 million over five years and reductions in network outages worth £2.5 million annually. Mark Moffat, CEO of IFS, described the acquisition as "a watershed moment in the evolution of decision-making for the industries IFS serves. By combining Copperleaf's decision analytics with IFS's robust enterprise solutions, businesses will be able to make more informed, real-time decisions, giving them a powerful competitive advantage in navigating complex and volatile economic environments with confidence and resilience." Judi Hess, Vice Chair of the Copperleaf Board of Directors, highlighted the unique synergy between Copperleaf and IFS, noting that "our combined capabilities will deliver unparalleled value to customers, enabling them to effectively address today's complex challenges while strategically preparing for the future." With this acquisition, IFS solidifies its position as a global leader in enterprise software and Industrial AI, offering businesses the tools to make data-driven, strategic decisions that enhance productivity, efficiency, and sustainability.