[Stay on top of transportation news: .]
GE Buys Software Company to Bolster Rail-Industry Supply Chain
General Electric Co. agreed to buy ShipXpress Inc., a cloud-based software firm, to bolster its supply chain offerings for railroad customers.
The deal will complement GE鈥檚 sensor technology and Predix operating system to improve shippers鈥 ability to move goods and transfer information, GE Transportation said in a statement听Aug. 30. Terms weren鈥檛 disclosed.
鈥淲e are very focused on helping better integrate and streamline the broader rail supply chain,鈥 said Seth Bodnar, chief digital officer of GE Transportation. ShipXpress鈥 capabilities are 鈥渞eally about helping global railways more efficiently and effectively interface with industrial companies that ship goods via rail.鈥
GE is hunting for deals to strengthen its growing software business as the company attempts to marry digital capabilities with heavy-duty machinery. The Boston-based company has shed most of its finance and consumer operations in favor of manufacturing industrial products such as gas turbines and locomotives.
The ShipXpress deal includes about 200 industry, technical and software development professionals, according to GE.
