Onyx gets the Knowledge

Infrastructure and services specialist kick-starts £100m turnover strategy with Knowledge IT buy

Growth-hungry Onyx Group has set itself on the acquisition trail once more by snapping up solutions and support firm Knowledge IT.

The £10m buy - aimed at boosting its managed services capability - caps three years of solid organic growth for Onyx, which has completed five major acquisitions since 2000, and is set to see turnover increase to £20m in 2014, a 13 per year-on-year increase.

The acquisition of Knowledge IT will boost Onyx's run rate revenue to over £30m and increase headcount to 170, the firm claimed. It describes the move as a ‘confident step' towards achieving its goal of smashing £100m revenue in the next five years.

Onyx owns five data centers and six workplace recovery facilities across the UK and has a growing base of more than 200 customers.

Neil Stephenson, chief executive of Onyx Group, said: "Increasingly over the past two years, customers have been asking us to manage their entire IT infrastructure, as well as providing resilient solutions to complex cloud and hosting requirements. The Knowledge IT team has a great reputation for delivering these services and this deal will make the Onyx propositions and reach stronger for both sets of customers."

George Sanger, Managing Director of Knowledge IT added: "Onyx Group, like Knowledge IT has an established reputation for providing outstanding customer support. We welcome the opportunity to share our expertise to help Onyx build on their achievements and grow the enlarged business."

Adam Holloway, Partner at Living Bridge, Onyx's private equity partner said: "Having invested in Onyx in 2011, we're delighted to see them make this strategic acquisition and are excited by the growth opportunities for the combined group."