Trimble Navigation Ltd. (Nasdaq: TRMB) agreed to spend $335 million for TMW Systems Inc., a provider of enterprise software to transportation and logistics companies.

Pamlico Capital, which invested $20 million in TMW in 2005, made an 11 times initial rate of return on the investment, generating roughly $200 million in proceeds.

TMW, headquartered in Beachwood, Ohio, was founded in 1983 by Tom Weisz. After he sold the company to the consortium of Pamlico and Peppertree Capital Management in 2005, Weisz remained on the board of directors as chairman. Since then the company has grown from about 100 employees to more than 500.

Once the deal with Trimble is completed, the entire board is set to be reconstituted.

When Charlotte, N.C.-based Pamlico first acquired TMW, the target had $25 million in annual revenue. Currently, it is trailing $96 million in revenue due to what the firm considers a combination of M&A and organic growth.

In September 2006, Pamlico backed TMW’s purchase of Maddocks Systems Inc., a Vancouver-based provider of software to the trucking industry. That following May, it picked up TMT Software Co. of Durham, N.C. Also in 2007, it bought Richardson, Texas-based Integrated Support Decision Corp. (ISDC), a developer of fuel optimization and freight matching systems. In December 2009, TMW took over privately-held BetaZone Inc. of Brentwood, Tenn., which did business through a subsidiary, Innovative Computing Corp. And in May 2011, it acquired Appian Logistics Software of Oklahoma City. Terms of each deal remain undisclosed.

TMW and Pamlico tapped William Blair & Co. to run the sale process, with King & Spalding LLP acting as legal adviser.

Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Trimble tapped Lazard and Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP as financial and legal advisers, respectively.

While the deal underscores a successful exit for Pamlico, the firm has also been acquisitive in its own right.

On Aug. 1, Pamlico announced that it made a significant equity investment to acquire a majority interest in TekLinks Inc. from Symmetric Capital and other shareholders. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

TekLinks, headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., is a provider of information technology services, including cloud-based systems, to businesses throughout Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, and the Gulf South region.

And in March, Pamlico wrapped up a deal to acquire SecureNet Inc., a Dallas security systems integrator, for an undisclosed price. Pamlico has incorporated SecureNet into its portfolio company Securadyne Systems LLC, a formed firm founded in February.

Meanwhile, Trimble has completed some deals of its own.

In May, the firm agreed to acquire Spime Inc., a Newark- based manufacturer and developer of navigation devices and applications. Trimble followed that up with WinEstimator Inc., a Kent, Wash.-based developer of cost-estimating software, in July. Financial terms were not announced.

For more coverage on the logistics sector, read "Logistics, Logistics, Logistics," and watch our interview with XPO Logistics’ chief executive Bradley Jacobs.

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