Electric Mail:-

buys

ElectricMail joins Kewill Systems Plc in a deal managed by Allied Powers Ltd.

The alliance of the UK's most respected Internet Solutions company with a market leader in EDI and Supply Chain Management systems came into force at Cambridge & Walton-on-Thames, on Wednesday, Nov 5th 1997.

ElectricMail Ltd, leaders in corporate Internet Systems Engineering, was acquired today by Kewill Systems Plc, the London Stock Market listed, multinational group of companies focused on Electronic Commerce, Supply Chain and Manufacturing systems. 

In a deal worth £3M in cash and stock, Kewill have acquired the entire share capital of ElectricMail. ElectricMail will retain its headquarters in Cambridge and will receive the funding and logistic support it needs to fully exploit its leadership position in the Internet market. 

ElectricMail Ltd have been pioneers in building commercial strength Internet and Intranet systems since its foundation in 1991 by John Stewart and Leo Smith, who identified the potential of the Internet long before it became fashionable.

Stewart and Smith had previously enjoyed considerable success in guiding the meteoric growth of TCP/IP software specialists Unipalm Ltd in the late 80s.

John Stewart, Marketing Director comments: 

"We understood the opportunity of the Internet as the global communications backbone and with ElectricMail we have concentrated on building systems that deliver the resilience, security and control that our corporate customers demand for their mission critical applications. We are really excited to team up with Kewill, gain access to their impressive customer base and benefit from their support and financial muscle." 

With a focus on delivering robust and secure Internet Connectivity with reliable E-mail and Web services to its broad base of over 1000 corporate and government sector clients, ElectricMail brings a wealth of practical network engineering expertise to the Kewill Group. 

Leo Smith, Technical Director is excited with the potential of the alliance:

"We look forward to teaming up with Kewill to deliver the next generation of Internet based EDI and business-to-business commerce systems. Between us we can deploy the entire range of systems and skills needed for 21st Century Trading." 

Kewiill employs about 500 staff in four divisional groupings across the UK, USA, Austria and Germany. With sales of approximately £40M p.a.

Kewill Group companies deliver systems covering the entire range of supply chain management: directing the movement of goods and data through Design, Manufacturing and Accounting, Warehouse Management and on to customers through Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and On-line Commerce. 

In recent years Kewill's Electronic Commerce division has shown strong growth through innovative EDI systems which link the majority of the UK's leading Retailers and Home Shopping Groups to around 4000 of their suppliers.

Kevin Overstall, CEO of Kewill Group explains:

"Within the Kewill Group we can now deliver the complete scope of electronic commerce systems. 

We are well poised to meet the demand as the marketplace discovers the benefits of on-line trading over the next couple of years."