Maintel continues shopping spree with Proximity buy

Unified comms firm to bolster Maintel's presence in services sector

Avaya partner Maintel has made its second acquisition in as many months in the form of managed services firm Proximity Communications.

The £9.6m net cash deal will see Maintel take over the Berkshire firm as well as its subsidiary Achilles Professional Services. The buy comes just a month after Maintel swallowed Datapoint, which boosted its top line.

Maintel claims that Proximity – a unified communications-focused managed services provider which specialises in voice and data – will diversify its revenue base and increase its skills in new products and services.

For the year ending 31 December 2013, Proximity made a profit before tax of £1.1m on sales which reached £12.4m. Maintel cited the firm's long-term relationships with both large and medium-sized enterprises as a key highlight of the deal, as well as the firm's 20 per cent hike in EBITDA over the past three years.

The newly acquired firm's network security was of particular interest to Maintel, which sees the area as an important factor in its long-term growth plans. It stressed that it will remain business as usual for both the companies' customers, with no immediate changes to the Proximity name or branding.

The firm's chief executive Darren Boyce will join the Maintel board as a non-executive director.

Maintel chief executive Eddie Buxton said: "The combined strength of the two businesses is a very logical and exciting prospect. Maintel and Proximity both have strong reputations in the market and we are confident that combining our services will provide the group with new and enhanced service offerings to our customers."