DLA Piper advises Heidelberger Druckmaschinen on the sale of software subsidiary DOCUFY to Elvaston Capital Management

DLA Piper has advised Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) on the sale of software provider DOCUFY GmbH, Bamberg, to Elvaston Capital Management, Berlin, as part of its continued focus on its cloud-based digitization strategy in its core business. In December 2019, Heidelberg had bundled its own peripheral software activities at DOCUFY, which usefully complemented DOCUFY's existing portfolio. This step will allow Heidelberg to further advance its positioning in cloud and data-based software and the corresponding range of different products and services tailored to customers in its core business.

With 120 employees, DOCUFY is one of Germany's leading premium providers of professional software solutions for managing product information and product knowledge. Its customers include well-known, internationally operating industrial companies from German-speaking countries, including several DAX-listed companies.

Having provided comprehensive legal advice to Heidelberg in the context of its transformation in 2020, DLA Piper – under the leadership of partners Dr Benjamin Parameswaran and Dr Henriette Norda – is now also advising Heidelberg on all legal aspects of aligning its portfolio with its core growth areas.

The DLA Piper team for this transaction was jointly led by partner Dr Benjamin Parameswaran and counsel Dr Isaschar Nicolaysen. The core team also included senior associate Sophie von Mandelsloh. In addition, partners Dr Henriette Norda (Employment), Verena Grentzenberg (both Hamburg), Dr Burkhard Führmeyer (Frankfurt), Jan Pohle (all IPT), Dr Gunne Bähr (Lit&Reg, both Cologne), Dr Roland Maaß (Corporate/Capital Markets), counsel Miray Kavruk (both Frankfurt), Dr Thorsten Ammann (Cologne), senior associates Katharina Pauls (all IPT, Hamburg), Dr Philipp Reclam (Real Estate, Frankfurt), Georg Haberkorn (Employment/Pensions, Munich) and associates Jan Schürmann (Corporate/M&A, Hamburg), Natalie Downar (IPT) and Daniel Lopez Ramos (Lit&Reg, both Cologne) also advised on the transaction.

The in-house team at Heidelberg was led by Sascha Donat (Head of M&A) and also included Rüdiger Jehn (M&A). Dr Leslie Melters (General Counsel) was in the lead for all legal issues at Heidelberg.

“We would like to thank the DLA Piper team led by Dr Benjamin Parameswaran for their once again excellent legal support in systematically streamlining our structures through strategic M&A activities as part of the successful focus on our cloud-based digitization strategy in our core business,” said Marcus A. Wassenberg, Chief Financial Officer of Heidelberg.