Steve Jones, founder and managing director of software specialist Vehnet (left), has retired from the role after 14 years in the business and handed responsibility of the company to Christopher Kenmore, president of Galaxy Engineering, who has bought the company.
Galaxy Engineering provides rugged wireless handheld computing devices to a range of industries, including automotive.
“I am delighted that Chris is taking over at Vehnet, he is an experienced and talented individual with a superb track record and proven leadership skills,” said Jones. “I believe he has the necessary drive and vision to take the company forward and I’m delighted that Vehnet is in the safest possible hands and can look to a great future ahead.”
Kenmore already knows the Vehnet business – Galaxy is a certified reseller of Vehnet software solutions in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).
“He knows the products and company intimately and recognises Vehnet’s potential for growth, particularly with the recent introduction of a new transportation management system, which has been developed specifically for the automotive logistics industry,” said Vehnet in a statement.
Kenmore (left) added: “Over the last couple of years I have become closely acquainted with Steve and his team, and have been constantly impressed by their capabilities and versatility. Accordingly, when the opportunity arose for me to acquire Vehnet, it was a very easy decision. There is a great deal of synergy between Vehnet and Galaxy, with the former bringing 14 years of unique development and expertise in yard management and vehicle transportation, and the latter 18 years of experience in mobile handheld and vehicle solutions, especially in RFID and voice solutions.
“Bringing fresh eyes to Vehnet, I will be looking to deliver even better levels of service to our existing customer base, while developing new opportunities for Vehnet's fantastic products," added Kenmore.
Regarding the closer ties between Vehnet and Galaxy Engineering under his watch Kenmore said that while they will remain separate companies there will be greater opportunity for ‘cross-fertilisation’.
“It brings more opportunity,” he told Automotive Logistics. “We have developers in Russia and developers in the UK [and] we can combine the two. In Russia we have a lot of expertise in RFID, which is becoming more important and we have voice picking solutions. We are looking at developing Vehnet along the lines of providing easier solutions for logistics transport, whether it is in the yard or in new transport management systems (TMS).
Regarding the latter technology, Kenmore said Vehnet would be concentrating on the TMS technology in the near term and that there were a lot of opportunities for upgrading existing yards.
Further announcements of new business at Vehnet are expected in the coming months.
Steve Jones has been a valued and long-term contributor to Automotive Logistics and its conferences across the globe and we wish him the all the best in his next venture.
