A majority stake in ARGUS International has been acquired by SGS, a certification, verification and inspection company. The acquisition aims to strengthen SGS's aviation auditing and consulting services and increase market penetration.

“ARGUS is a globally recognised brand name in the airline, business aviation, fixed wing and rotary engine markets. Its broad client base and international activities will help SGS grow and keep pace with the increasing global demand of air traffic and safety,” says SGS CEO Frankie Ng.

SGS has an extensive history spanning over 140 years in verification and inspection, ensuring organisational safety, quality and adherence to regulatory standards across a broad range of industry verticals. This storied history and unique perspective will further enhance ARGUS International's offerings and accelerate its mission to deliver relevant and valuable information solutions to the business aviation, air carrier, rotary wing, UAS and overall aerospace industry.

“ARGUS is proud to become a member of the SGS family and we look forward to the next chapter,” adds CEO Joe Moeggenberg. “We are confident that both SGS and ARGUS will deliver even greater value to the entire industry with the resources and verification experience SGS brings to the table.”

ARGUS COO Bill Yantiss continues: “The values that make both organisations exceptional individually are a perfect match and set the stage for fruitful collaborative efforts.”

ARGUS International, PRISM and ARGUS PROS will continue to operate as distinctive businesses within SGS' certification and business enhancement unit.

Established in 1878 and headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, SGS claims to be the world's leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company, recognised as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 97,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world.

ARGUS International provides specialised aviation services that allow organisations to improve their operational and business decision-making with software solutions. ARGUS provides a collection of safety audits for both the business aviation and commercial aviation sectors. Its charter operator ratings are an independent source of overall operator quality in the business aviation space. ARGUS subsidiaries include ARGUS PROS, a provider of onsite safety audits and PRISM, providing safety management systems, certification and consultation services. ARGUS was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Colorado.