Körber Aims To Mold Latin American Supply Chain With Otimis Stake

The Körber Group is looking to shape the supply chain of the future in Latin America with the acquisition of a majority stake in Brazil-based Otimis, Körber announced on Wednesday (Jan. 8). With locations in Blumenau and São Paulo in Brazil, and Santiago in Chile, and having expansion plans for Mexico, Otimis expands Körber’s presence within North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific (APAC) regions.

“This is a further component of our successful internationalization strategy,” said Stephan Seifert, chairman of Körber’s executive board. “With Otimis, we have an ideal basis for further growth in Latin America, and for offering our customers market-leading logistics solutions.”

Otimis is no stranger to Körber, having been a partner and reseller of Körber Logistics’ HighJump supply chain management solutions for more than 15 years.

“The trusted and successful cooperation that has grown over the years between HighJump and Otimis has encouraged us to take the next step: bringing Otimis under the Körber umbrella,” said Dirk Hejnal, CEO of business area logistics systems. “Essentially a beachhead in the region, the addition of Otimis to Körber Logistics empowers us — along with companies worldwide — with another means to think globally, while executing locally.”

Under Körber, Otimis can tap into a comprehensive suite of supply chain technologies: supply chain management software, industrial voice solutions, autonomous mobile robotics (AMR) and material handling automation.

“Our local roots, coupled with the strength of the global Körber network, are ideal prerequisites for sustainable growth for us and our customers. The entire Otimis team and I look forward to being part of Körber, and shaping the supply chain of the future together,” said Hélcio Lenz, founder and CEO of Otimis.

The collaboration with Otimis follows Körber’s recent majority stake in the Cohesio Group, an integrator of voice-directed and AMR solutions for logistics in APAC.

At the onset of Industry 4.0, the drive toward supply chain digitization is fueling massive investments in Internet of Things (IoT), smart sensors and connected devices. The technology is often considered a game-changer for supply chain management and logistics operations, able to both elevate the efficiency of operations and connect corporates to real-time data for deep business intelligence and analytics.