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Pa. company acquires Universal Solutions
Company to stay in Charleston, operate as subsidiary
By Matthew French
Staff Writer
Universal Solutions has announced that it has been acquired by a Pennsylvania-based public company, Black Box Solutions Inc. of Pittsburgh. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The acquisition marks a new beginning for the company that first came to Charleston in early 2003. Universal Solutions has been re-branded as Black Box Universal Solutions Inc., says Bob Scott, founder and former chief executive officer of Universal Solutions.
“The deal was structured as an asset purchase, so Black Box bought all of our assets and assumed all of our debt,” Scott says. “We will now operate as Black Box Universal Solutions Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Black Box.”
Universal has focused on installing and maintaining conveyed voice and data networks. The company specializes in Internet Protocol-based communications solutions.
The move is part of Black Box’s ongoing strategy to cash in on the burgeoning voice and integrated networks business. The company began by selling connectivity devices and has come to specialize in technical services, data networking and structured cabling services.
“They have traditionally not had a large practice in the voice communications field,” Scott says. “That’s where they’re trying to grow now: voice communications and converged infrastructure.”
Converged infrastructure is an industry term meaning the combining of traditionally disparate systems, such as voice and data. Voice over Internet Protocol is perhaps the best-known converged infrastructure practice.
Universal Solutions, listed in 2002 by Inc. magazine as the 28th fastest-growing U.S. company, is the second voice company that Black Box has purchased in recent months. The first came in January with the acquisition of Norstan Inc., a publicly traded Minnesota company.
“With the purchase of Universal, we give Black Box complete coverage of the southeastern United States,” Scott says. “Norstan gives them the Northeast, and now the company will look to the Midwest and western United States”
Growing Pains
The ultimate decision to sell his company, Scott says, was not a particularly difficult one. The deal will benefit his company, his employees and his customers, all of which will have a more solid financial backing under the umbrella of a company like Black Box.
“Our employees will be able to take advantage of improved benefits packages and pension plans and take advantage of opportunities offered by a worldwide company,” he says. “Our customers will benefit because we will have more financial backing and more technology expertise to support them. This was definitely the right strategy for my company, its employees and customers, and the Black Box shareholders.”
Scott will maintain control of Black Box Universal Solutions, although he doesn’t know what his specific title will be. He plans to run the company in the same manner he has done since he helped found it in 1997, he says.
“The most challenging thing for me will be having a boss for the first time in 10 years,” he says. “We are now part of a public company, and I was a little concerned about compliance issues and flexibility. But I think this is just part of doing business now.”
Universal has between 35 and 40 employees in the Charleston area and just under 200 worldwide.
Regional impact
Ernest Andrade, director of the Charleston Digital Corridor, says the move will likely have nothing but positive fallout for the technology industry in the region.
“Young companies like Universal Solutions have to have the ability to grow, and this acquisition by Black Box provides the company with the expertise and finances it needs,” Andrade says. “What is important to this area is that, although acquired, the company will still operate as a stand-alone entity and will remain in this region.”
Andrade says he is also gratified that Scott, who recently completed a term of service on the Digital Corridor’s board of directors, will remain in the area and continue to run the company for at least two years.
“Obviously the presence of publicly traded companies is a net plus for the Digital Corridor and the region in general,” Andrade says. “It will help attract more corporate talent, and the more corporate presence we have here, the greater will be the ability of new startups to grow.”
Scott is similarly happy with the ability of the company to stay in the area and even improve its market position with the purchase, he says.
“Right now, Black Box wants us to continue to expand in our existing footprint,” Scott says. “The company will do other strategic acquisitions to expand the voice operations. But the key thing to remember is that the company is staying here, the headquarters is staying here and with a new financial backing, we’re stronger than ever.”
Matthew French is a staff writer for the Business Journal. E-mail him at mfrench@charlestonbusiness.com.
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