Ricoh expand AV services with double acquisition

Ricoh has made a double swoop as it continues to pick up channel players to bolster its market coverage and ability to deliver customer support.

The vendor has moved for Pure AV and AVC, which provides it greater coverage of both the UK and mainland Europe.

Pure AV is an established business, founded in 2003 and based in Preston, with a staff of 72 employees that support global projects. Ricoh will retain all staff and the sites the firm operates from.

The second deal is for another audiovisual (AV) player that also has a track record in workplace management. Danish player AVC has been going since 1965 and comes with 50 staff and 800 customers. Everyone will be retained, and the operation will trade under its own name reporting into Ricoh Denmark.

Edward Hamilton, vice-president of communication services at Ricoh Europe, said that Pure Av would have a positive impact on its ability to support customers.

“This is a significant addition to Ricoh’s communication services delivery business, both within the UK and at a European level. Not only will it accelerate our organic growth in this sector, it will strengthen our technical design and delivery capability within the corporate, higher education and healthcare markets,” he said.

“Leveraging the specialist skills of Pure AV creates opportunities for lifelong learning and up-skilling of Ricoh’s existing employees, meaning our customers receive an even more diverse and extensive level of support,” he added.

In response, Peter Sutton, managing director at Pure AV, said that Ricoh’s ownership would give it more muscle in the market.

“We’re excited to start a new chapter that will allow us to accelerate our long-term growth strategy while delivering best-in-class solutions to our clients in the UK and Europe. Ricoh’s worldwide infrastructure and end-to-end managed services expertise, combined with the strength of our design, engineering, and support services, will enable us to deliver powerful solutions on a local and global scale,” he said.

When it came to AVC, Hamilton said that it would tap into the growing demand for services that enable more hybrid working.

“The acquisition of AVC supports Ricoh’s drive to lead change at work that unleashes human potential through the power and opportunity of technology. It also demonstrates our ability to empower customers in establishing effective hybrid working environments and supports their sustainability initiatives. Crucially, this acquisition enhances our provision of scalable collaboration technologies and support to enable people to work effectively regardless of location,” he said.

Niels Bull, managing director of AVC, said that it would be able to bring a fair bit to the table that would benefit the vendor.

“Ricoh has strong ambitions, and we are pleased that AVC will be an important part of realising these. AVC brings Ricoh a market-leading team in the design and implementation of advanced AV solutions. In turn, Ricoh ensures that AVC can offer international reach and a broader range of products and services for the digital workplace,” he said.

Ricoh’s previous move to dip into the channel to bolster its own business came in October 2020, when the vendor moved to acquire  MTI Technology to add to its services capabilities across Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).