K3, a software provider to the supply chain sector, has increased its turnover to some £12 million after it bought McGuffie Brunton. The acquisition of the Manchester-based software manufacturer was agreed for £12.5 million.

K3, a software provider to the supply chain sector, has increased its turnover to some £12 million after it bought McGuffie Brunton. The acquisition of the Manchester-based software manufacturer was agreed for £12.5 million.

The financial terms of the deal were satisfied in £10 million cash with the balance paid through the issue of more than 2 million ordinary shares. The deal was supported by debt provided by The Royal Bank of Scotland.

McGuffie Brunton is one of two UK distributors of the SYSPRO range of Microsoft-based resource planning software used by manufacturing and distribution companies. The other distributor is Information Engineering Group, which was bought by K3 in 2005.

This latest deal has provided an exit for McGuffie’s managing director and founder Paul Murray, who has led the business for 26 years. He has been replaced by sales director Howard Joseph.

Surrey-based K3’s products are used by some 3,000 retail, manufacturing and distribution companies in more than 30 countries.

McGuffie Brunton has four offices in the UK serving organisations such as KLM Engineering, Smurfit Corrugated UK, ABI Caravan and Premier Percussion. In the year ending December 2006, the company made an operating profit of £1.7 million from a £6.32 million turnover.