Aconex Limited (ASX: ACX) was an ASX 200 listed public Australian company providing mobile and web-based collaboration technologies for project information and process management (also sometimes described as project management or project extranet systems), on a software as a service (SaaS) basis, to clients in the construction, infrastructure, power, mining, and oil and gas sectors.

Aconex Limited
Company typePublic
IndustryComputer software
FoundedMelbourne (2000)
Headquarters
Key people
Leigh Jasper, CEO and co-founder
Robert Phillpot, SVP and co-founder
ProductsAconex Platform, Aconex Connected BIM, Aconex Field, Aconex Handover
Revenue$123.4m AUD (2016)[1]
WebsiteAconex

On 17 December 2017, Oracle Corporation agreed to purchase Aconex in a deal valuing the business at A$7.80 per share (US$1.19 billion).[2][3] Shareholders approved the takeover bid on 14 March 2018; Supreme Court of Victoria approval was granted on Thursday, 15 March 2018.[4] Oracle now offers Aconex solutions via its Oracle Aconex platform.[5]

History

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Aconex was founded in 2000 by Leigh Jasper and Robert Phillpot to offer construction collaboration and procurement management services (its name is a concatenation of Australian Construction Exchange).[6] However, due to low market interest in web-based procurement, it focused on expanding its online collaboration services, growing domestic revenue rapidly during the first half of the 2000s.

By late 2004, Aconex had established a presence in the UK market,[6] and was expanding into other regions, including Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Its overseas activity helped it win the 'Emerging Exporter' award in the 2006 Australian Export Awards.[7]

In September 2008, Aconex secured an A$107.5m private equity investment from US-based technology investor Francisco Partners.[8][9] It has since established a substantial presence in North America.

By 2014, Aconex had served construction and engineering projects with an aggregate value of more than A$800 billion, across all major geographic markets, from more than 40 offices worldwide.[10]

The company completed its initial public offering (IPO) of ordinary shares on December 9, 2014 and was listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) under the ticker code ACX.[11]

In August 2015, Aconex purchased the Incite Keystone platform from CIMIC group.[12]

In March 2016, Aconex acquired the Germany-based Conject Holding GmbH for A$96m.[13]

On 17 December 2017, Oracle bought Aconex for AUD 7.80 per share in cash.[14]

Products / services

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Aconex services include:[15]

  • Construction project information and process management (managing processes, documents, drawings, building information models, communications, workflows, audit trails, and other project information online - both mobile and web access)
  • Construction field management (managing field inspections and issues from mobile devices)
  • O&M manuals (developing digital operation and maintenance manuals for post-construction handover to asset owner and dynamic management of asset information)
  • BIM (building information modeling) data and process management (accessing and managing BIM models at the object level for project management)
  • Interface management (identifying and resolving interface issues on oil and gas projects)

In 2011, the company launched an online bidding network, branded BidContender.[16] In 2011 and 2012, the company launched Aconex Mobile - mobile applications (iPhone and iPad) for access to the Aconex online collaboration platform.[17] In 2012, the company launched Aconex Field - a mobile field inspection and issues management solution for the iPhone and iPad,[18] and an Android version followed in 2013. Also in 2013, the company launched Aconex Smart Manuals - a collaboration solution for the post-construction handover of digital operation and maintenance (O&M) manuals.[19] In 2014, the company launched Aconex Connected BIM - an extension of the Aconex platform for BIM project collaboration[20] - and Aconex Handover - a suite of post-construction handover solutions that includes Smart Manuals and Dynamic Manuals, a mobile solution for asset information management.[21]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Aconex Reports FY16 Results: $123.4m Revenue, $13.6m EBITDA", aconex.com. Retrieved 18 October 2016.
  2. ^ M. Stewart, Robb (December 17, 2017). "Oracle to Buy Australian Software Maker Aconex". The Wall Street Journal. New York City, New York. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  3. ^ "Oracle Corp to buy Australia's Aconex for $1.19 billion". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2023-04-25.
  4. ^ "Aconex shareholders vote in favour of scheme" (PDF). Australian Stock Exchange. March 14, 2018. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  5. ^ "Proven Project Delivery and Controls | Oracle".
  6. ^ a b Wilkinson, P. (2005) Construction Collaboration Technologies: The Extranet Evolution Taylor & Francis, London.
  7. ^ 2006 Australian Export Awards National Winners "2006 Australian Export Awards National Winners - Australian Export Awards". Archived from the original on 2012-02-27. Retrieved 2011-11-07.
  8. ^ "Aconex lands private equity deal". The Age. 2008-09-21. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
  9. ^ "Aconex gears for expansion after $107.5 million injection", Andrew Colley, Australian IT, 22 September 2008, http://www.theaustralian.com.au/australian-it-old/aconex-secures-1075-million-injection/story-e6frgamo-1111117553725
  10. ^ "Construction IT (Finally) Completes the 'Tower of Babel': Interview with Aconex CEO Leigh Jasper". HuffPost. 2013-03-12. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
  11. ^ "Home". Australian Securities Exchange. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
  12. ^ "Aconex Forms Strategic Partnership With CIMIC Group". GlobeNewswire News Room. 2015-08-05. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
  13. ^ Yueyang, Maggie Lu (18 March 2016). "Aconex snaps up Conject for $96m". The Australian. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
  14. ^ Oracle buys Aconex
  15. ^ Online collaboration for project information management with Aconex http://www.aconex.com/solutions
  16. ^ Wilkinson, Paul (2011-05-18). "A look at BidConTender". Extranet Evolution. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
  17. ^ The Future of Construction Technology, http://www.constructech.com/news/articles/article.aspx?article_id=9407/[permanent dead link]
  18. ^ Aconex Touts Integration with New Field App, https://enr.construction.com/technology/information_technology/2012/1008-aconex-field-app-touts-integration.asp/
  19. ^ "New Product Suite Aims to Ease Operations and Maintenance Handover for Capital Projects | Cadalyst". www.cadalyst.com. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
  20. ^ "Project Management System Aims to Share and Enrich Building Information Models With Facility Data | 2014-10-29 | ENR | Engineering News-Record". www.enr.com. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
  21. ^ Aconex Launches Dynamic Manuals for Mobile Handover,"Aconex Launches Dynamic Manuals for Mobile Handover | Business to Business Software". Archived from the original on 2014-11-08. Retrieved 2014-11-07.