Networking Powerhouse Carousel Extends Acquisition Streak To Five

Fast-growing VAR Carousel Industries Monday confirmed its fifth acquisition in two years, snapping up TAC Centre of Westwood, Mass. TAC Centre, which specializes in Nortel sales, will bolster Carousel's expanding Avaya-Nortel practice, even as Carousel looks to expand beyond its Avaya stronghold and into other technology segments.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Carousel, based in Exeter, R.I., and ranked No. 202 on the 2010 VAR500 listing, made a number of acquisitions in 2010, including Atlanta-based LANForce Consulting Group and assets from Canton, Mass.-based TriNET Systems and Burlington, Ontario-based BrantTel Networks.

James Marsh, Carousel's senior vice president, told CRN earlier this month that Carousel would continue to look for acquisition targets, not only Avaya and former Nortel partners, but also companies that push Carousel further into security and virtualization.

Marsh had previously mentioned that Carousel was in talks to acquire a virtualization-focused VAR, but TAC Centre's expertise is Nortel. According to Carousel, it brings a high concentration of health-care and higher-education customers as well.

"This acquisition is particularly exciting for us because of the Nortel experience the TAC team brings to Carousel," said Jeff Gardner, Carousel CEO, in a statement. "We have many customers with a blend of Avaya and Nortel products in their infrastructure. The acquisition of TAC Centre allows us to continue enhancing our delivery of Nortel support and services to our customers as they begin to migrate to the Avaya platform."

TAC Centre's other product and service specialties include Microsoft, Cisco and Adtran. With the close of the deal, Michael Judge, TAC Centre's president and CEO, will become director of Nortel Solutions at Carousel.

"Not only do we bring a valuable resource to Carousel with our Nortel experience, [but also] our customer base can rest assured that they will have the support of one of Avaya's top business partners as they begin their migration to the Avaya platform," Judge said in a statement.