A perfect fit for Tracsis as it pays £4.5m for rail software company

Datasys supplies the majority of the UK’s train operating companies including First Group, Go-Ahead, Stagecoach, National Express, Arriva, and Virgin.

Tracsis chief executive John McArthur said Datasys will fit well with Leeds-based Tracsis as both have similar customers but operate in totally different areas.

“Datasys is exactly what we look for in an acquisition,” he said. “It is a well-run, profitable technology business with a good footprint in the rail industry.

“Datasys looks at the root causes of delay and performance related incidents. It helps railways companies to capture an event.”

He added that there will be no job losses following the deal.

“There’s an overlap for the customer base, but not for the product base,” he said.

In its last financial year Datasys made pre-tax profits of £290,000 on revenue of £2.3m.

The business is debt free and has cash balances of £1.3m and tangible net assets of £400,000.

Datasys employs 17 staff, all of whom will remain with the business with the exception of departing shareholder directors who are not involved with day to day operations.

Analyst Eric Burns, at WH Ireland, said: “Datasys will be highly complementary to Tracsis’s existing software offering... This deal should be materially value-enhancing for Tracsis.”