LACROIX Group positions itself as European leader in Smart City technology with the acquisition of Belgian company Smartnodes

LACROIX Group has just concluded a strategic deal by acquiring the Belgian start-up Smartnodes, a small company founded on inter-university research which has won numerous international awards for its innovations in Smart Lighting systems.

This start-up, with around fifteen employees, strengthens the European position of LACROIX Group in the Smart Cities market, complementing its offer related to the intelligent management of street lighting infrastructure.

With Smartnodes, the group is expanding its offer thanks to dynamic products at the cutting edge of technology, while also strengthening its highly skilled engineering teams. In doing so, it aims to accelerate its ability to implement new road-management use cases by harnessing street lighting infrastructure with dynamic technology. Smart Lighting regulates the zones, times and intensity of lighting for environmentally friendly cities, while retaining visual attractiveness and safety. Available in all public places, the street lighting network, fitted with new sensors, thus becomes the support base for the development of Smart City networks.

LACROIX Group strengthens its European position as a Smart City technology provider.
Already established in Spain, Germany and Italy, LACROIX Group is expanding its European footprint with the acquisition of Smartnodes.  After covering Belgium and the Netherlands, the priority targets for Smartnodes are France, the DACH countries (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) and Northern Europe, drawing on an extensive and highly dynamic offer.
 “With a keen high-tech focus, the company Smartnodes, a spin-off of the University of Liège and the University of Louvain, is a pure start-up which, in a very short space of time, has successfully developed and marketed outside Belgium a range of detection and communication (IoT) products based on the implementation of a low-bandwidth mesh network and edge-computing systems. Smartnodes can rely on a very fine team of engineers and sales representatives committed to meeting the challenges of tomorrow’s cities,” emphasises Jean Beka, CEO of Smartnodes.

An acquisition in line with LACROIX Group’s Smart Cities growth strategy.
“The arrival of Smartnodes, following on from the group’s acquisition of Sogexi in 2016, strengthens our European leadership in the field of smart street lighting management. This is in line with the takeover of SAE IT-systems at the beginning of 2019 in support of our goal to become the technological equipment leader in the Smart Cities market,” says Vincent Bedouin, LACROIX Group’s Chairman and CEO.

ABOUT LACROIX Group
LACROIX Group is an international technological equipment manufacturer, aiming to serve a connected and responsible world with its technical and industrial excellence. Registered as a family business, the Group is able to combine the agility necessary to innovate in a constantly changing technological world with the long-term vision to invest in and build the future.
LACROIX Group provides connected, secure equipment for the management of smart road infrastructure (street lighting, traffic management and regulation, signage, V2X) through LACROIX City and for the management of water and energy infrastructure through LACROIX Environment.
LACROIX Group also develops and produces electronic equipment for its automobile, home automation, aeronautics, industry and healthcare customers through LACROIX Electronics.
Far from having big futuristic plans which are totally unrealistic, the Group works with its customers and partners to link today’s world and tomorrow’s world. By helping them to build the industry of the future and to benefit from the innovation opportunities all around us, LACROIX Group provides the equipment for a smarter world.
The Group has its head office in Saint Herblain, and operates in France, Germany, Poland, Tunisia, Spain, Italy and Singapore. It has a turnover of €468 M. It is managed by Vincent Bedouin. 70% of its capital is family-owned and 30% is listed in Compartment C of Euronext.
Further information: www.lacroix-group.com.

ABOUT SMARTNODES
Smartnodes is a company specialising in the development and marketing of communication modules fitted with sensors and edge-computing technology for Smart City solutions.  Smartnodes distributes its IOT products to public authorities, as well as to the private sector.
The company is based in Liège, Belgium.  Further information: www.smartnodes.be.