Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/815607
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 26 APRIL 2017 17 Events Shireburn's CA Plus Ltd acquired by Gentrack CA Plus Limited, the Shireburn Software Group subsidiary fo- cused on software that manages concession revenues in airports and shopping centres, has today announced that Gentrack Group Ltd (GTK), has agreed to acquire CA Plus Ltd subject to certain fi- nal conditions, and that closing is targeted for 30 April. Gentrack is listed on the New Zealand and Australian Stock Exchanges. CA Plus Ltd will form a part of their airport divi- sion including Airport 20/20 and Blip Systems AS, the Denmark based world leader in passenger flow, queue prediction and capac- ity forecasting software, also ac- quired by Gentrack today. Gentrack has acquired 75% of CA Plus Limited from Shireburn with a three year performance based price for the remaining 25% and creates a strong align- ment of interest to continue to drive growth. The acquisition re- lates solely to Shireburn's CA Plus business. Shireburn's CA+ is the market leading non-aeronautical rev- enue management system for airports, with installations in Europe, Africa, Latin-America and the Caribbean. It comprises a holistic and modular solution for airport concession manage- ment. CA+ also enables airports and shopping malls to automate many of their processes that are today done manually, such as that of collecting sales data from concessions for analysis in the CA+ BI Portal. The combined Airport 20/20 and CA+ product offering is well positioned for further global growth, capitalising on the need for airports to increase their non-aeronautical business – a revenue stream that accounts un- derpins airport profitability and on which airports continue to rely heavily in order to run their operations. The airport non-aer- onautical revenue market was estimated in the ACI Economic Report 2016 at an annual value of US$58 billion. The deal has ensured continuity for clients and staff and will con- tinue to operate out of its Malta offices at the SkyParks Business Centre while offering significant expansion opportunities. Shireburn Software and CA Plus CEO, John de Giorgio said that "the combined strength of Airport 20/20 in the airport op- erations sector and CA Plus in the non-aeronautical and retail sec- tors offers a great opportunity for further accelerating growth." Gentrack is a global leader in the development, implementa- tion and support of specialist soft- ware for airports, energy utilities and water companies. Its airport division offers Airport 20/20, a comprehensive suite of integrated solutions that are engineered to optimise an airport's operations. Airport 20/20 has 73 airport cus- tomers worldwide including Hong Kong, JFK T1, Newark Liberty, Sydney, Finavia, Melbourne and Santiago. "This investment also allows Shireburn to further advance its leadership in the local business software market" said the CEO. Shireburn Software won the Best B2B Application award in the Malta Communications Author- ity awards ceremony on the 11 April 2017 for its Shireburn Indi- go Payroll Cloud based solution. This was the third time Shireburn was nominated and the third time it won this award for differ- ent products. IBB to open eleventh hotel in Germany in June It's BATREE recycling time THE Valletta-based hotel group IBB Hotel Collection, which the other week announced the resto- ration and renovation of Senglea's iconic Maċina Bastion to become the first exclusive Cugó Gran ho- tel in Malta, stated that work on the IBB Hotel in the German city of Ingelheim is progressing ac- cording to schedule. The hotel, the eleventh one forming part of the IBB Hotel Collection, is being built in the new center of the his- toric town on the Rhine, and set to open in June 2017. Vladimir Saal, Managing Di- rector of the hotel group operat- ing in Austria, Spain, Germany, Poland and, soon also in Malta, said: ''With the highly active metropolitan region Mainz, Wiesbaden, and Frankfurt at the door, Ingelheim is an excellent location for a hotel of the IBB Hotel Collection. With the local companies and wine tourism in the emerging region of Rhein- hessen, the city has a constant demand for hotel rooms." Situated next to the new cul- tural and entertainment venue kING and not far from the In- gelheim railway station, the IBB Hotel Ingelheim is a modern city hotel which will attract business and private visitors from the city and region alike. With 103 rooms and six studios, the IBB Hotel Ingelheim presents a casually elegant ambiance, with natural materials and stylish fur- nishings combined with trendy colours such as warm reds, earth tones and fresh green. The stu- dios are 32 to 34 square meters large On the upper floor, the ho- tel will have a bar - lounge that serves both breakfast and bistro dishes, besides offering breath- taking views of the city. A meet- ing room with a fixed boardroom technology, and a gym for hotel guests complete the offer. Fur- thermore, the hotel is located in the vicinity of two spacious con- ference facilities, the new kING cultural and entertainment ven- ue and the ICC Media Confer- ence Centre. Operating from its headquar- ters in Valletta, the IBB Hotel Collection is part of the Von der Heyden Group. Currently, it operates ten hotels in Austria, Spain, Germany and Poland, with another two hotels, namely Cugó Gran Maċina Grand Har- bour in Senglea and IBB Pjazza Merkanti in Valletta, opening in mid-summer 2017 and January 2018 respectively. The latest ho- tel openings have been the IBB Blue Hotel Berlin Airport near Berlin's Schönefeld airport and the 4Rest Hotel Hall/Innsbruck in Austria. The portfolio includes business and resort hotels in the three-, four- and five-star category. Pro- viding leasing, management and franchise contracts and invests in attractive operator free prop- erties, the hotel company has ambitious growth plans, focus- ing on the countries where it is already active. The reception of the IBB Hotel Ingelheim THE first collection points for recycling of used batteries as part of a national battery collec- tion campaign called BATREE are now in place. The public can drop off their used batteries for recycling at the local councils of Birkirkara, Qormi, Sliema, Hamrun, Santa Venera, Ghaxaq and Pembroke in new attrac- tive BATREE containers. Over the coming days, more than 300 bins will be installed across Malta and Gozo, including in many schools. All portable batteries, includ- ing rechargeable batteries used for handheld devices, such as portable lights and remote con- trols, from 9 volts down to but- ton batteries used for watches and clocks, can be deposited in these BATREE containers at the respective Local Councils. "Our campaign is accessible and aims to change battery re- cycling behaviour in the long- term. Unwanted batteries can easily be deposited at the near- est Local Council," said Daniel Tabone, GreenPak 's Operations Manager. "Old batteries cause harm to the environment when they are disposed in the landfill. This year Malta strives to reach the EU's 45% collection target, which means that almost half of used batteries must be recycled. It is therefore very important that we recycle batteries and not dispose of them in the black gar- bage bags, which will eventually end up in the landfill," he added. BATREE is a nationwide initia- tive for the recycling of batter- ies. As from this year, BATREE has replaced the government run Batterina scheme that was financed by an eco-tax system. As from this year, eco-tax has been removed and GreenPak Coop stepped in to take up the financing and responsibility to increase recycling of batteries across Malta and Gozo. Local councils, station- ers and shops wishing to participate in the BATREE campaign should contact BA- TREE on 21660233 or email collections@batree.com.mt The first BATREE containers have been installed at the Local Councils of Birkirkara, Qormi, Sliema, Hamrun, Santa Venera, Ghaxaq and Pembroke. Picture shows (from left) Hamrun Mayor Christian Sammut and GreenPak's Operations Manager Daniel Tabone