Dover to Acquire Soft-Pak Software Solutions

Dover announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire So. Cal. Soft-Pak, Inc., an independent provider of integrated back office, route management and customer relationship management software solutions to the waste and recycling fleet industry.

Following the close of the transaction, Soft-Pak will become part of the Environmental Solutions Group (ESG) business unit, a supplier of waste handling solutions to the North American waste and recycling industry, in Dover's engineered products segment.

Soft-Pak is headquartered in San Diego and has a 30-year track record of serving hundreds of waste and recycling fleets nationwide with innovative software solutions. In 2014, Soft-Pak launched its Mobile-Pak in-cab connected tablet solution, which includes real-time GPS tracking, route management in real time and various functionalities allowing integration of moving fleet into the hauler's back office.

The acquisition enhances ESG's digital offerings centered around connected refuse vehicle and productivity-enhancing solutions. "Further integration between a fleet's mobile assets, customer management and back office operations will position ESG to deliver an industry-leading integrated offering for refuse vehicles," according to the company.

"We are excited to bring together Soft-Pak's well-recognized, industry-specific software solutions and ESG's growing software and digital portfolio. We believe the integrated solutions will drive growth of ESG's core refuse vehicle offering and associated software and deliver tangible value-add to our waste and recycling industry customers," said Richard J. Tobin, Dover's president and CEO, in a statement. "This transaction is another building block in Dover's capital deployment strategy that emphasizes investments in attractive close-to-core markets that offer potential for sustainable, profitable growth and where our team can create value for our shareholders."

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The transaction is subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2020. Dover expects the acquisition to be accretive to the growth and margin profile of ESG and Dover and to achieve double-digit return on capital in three years.