On 22 August, netGuru Incorporated announced that it had entered into an asset purchase agreement with Bentley Systems, under which Bentley has agreed to acquire netGuru's Research Engineers International (REI) business. This business includes the STAAD.Pro structural analysis and design product line. At the time of the acquisition, Santanu Das, netGuru's chief operating officer, will join Bentley.

Commenting on the agreement, Buddy Cleveland, senior vice president, Bentley Software, explained the attraction of the REI business and STAAD product lines to Bentley. "We are very excited about this agreement and look forward to welcoming the STAAD users to the Bentley user community. This acquisition will extend our design solutions in all four of our vertical market segments with one of the most popular and comprehensive structural design product lines in the market today."

netGuru chairman and chief executive Amrit Das added, "The engineering software industry has been consolidating and moving toward full integration of software capabilities. The joining of REI's engineering operations, including the STAAD brand of software and services and support, with Bentley as a leading software provider to the AEC market, would form a powerful complement that would be able to provide seamless workflow processing capabilities for engineers around the world."

The acquisition will include netGuru's worldwide operations associated with REI, including the STAAD structural analysis and design product lines, software and product development, customer support and relationships, and offices associated with the worldwide business, including offices in Yorba Linda, California; Bristol, UK; and Kolkata, India; as well as REI sales offices in other parts of Europe and Asia. netGuru will retain its collaborative software operations and products, including eReview and ForReview, and its information technology and engineering business process outsource services businesses.

The sale is subject to various closing conditions, including approval by netGuru stockholders and compliance with regulatory requirements. If approved, the sale is expected to close before the end of 2005.

For more information contact Bentley Systems, 011 462 5811.