TOTLCOM and Cooper Technologies have merged, uniting two California-based IT service providers with data and voice expertise, the companies have confirmed to ChannelE2E. Financial terms were not disclosed.
TOTLCOM is a key ShoreTel and SonicWall partner that offers managed and cloud services -- particularly in the voice market. Cooper blends hardware and software into a managed services practice that supports such vertical markets as education, first responders, government agencies and agriculture.
The combined company will carry TOTLCOM's name, with Cooper President Aaron McDonald shifting to VP of managed services for TOTLCOM.
The merger will likely cement the combined entity’s position in the central and northern California region. TOTLCOM’s home base is in Watsonville, California, but the company also has offices in Sacramento, Modesto, and Fresno. Meanwhile, Cooper is based in Santa Cruz. According to the announcement, the companies have had many mutual customers over the years, with TOTLCOM handling voice technology needs and Cooper supplying data services.
In a prepared statement, TOTLCOM CFO and Founder Sam Bishop said VoIP telephone systems have been so ingrained within data networks that his company is often called on to solve issues caused by both systems running on the same network.
“For example, it is extremely important that voice take precedence over data, or the conversation will be severely disrupted,” he said. “It takes specialized expertise to make this happen perfectly. After seeing the exceptional service we provide, customers have asked us to take over their data networks too. Now we are in a much better position to do so.”
In the same statement, McDonald said the merger is an important move for Cooper, allowing the company to bring its services to a larger client base.
Cooper was founded in 2000 to bring IT support services to businesses while helping them streamline their systems. By contrast, TOTLCOM brings more than four decades of experience to the table. Since launching operations in 1973 as a Radio Common Carrier, the company has gone on to position itself as one of the more aggressive telecommunications services companies in the region.
PS: Thank you to Ulistic for the M&A heads up.
