Mentor prepares to acquire Aptix Corp.

Aptix, one of the pioneers of the rapid prototyping market, provides the System Explorer line of reconfigurable prototyping products. System Explorer would potentially complement the more expensive emulation systems sold by Mentor Graphics.

Mentor has made no announcements, but a spokesman confirmed that a deal is in the works. "The transaction doesn't close for 10 days, and the judge has to rule on it, plus any potential other issues," the spokesman said. "It is just too premature to discuss it now."

"That said, Aptix has some good people and some good technology and we look forward to bringing them on board," the Mentor spokesman said.

Hamdi El-Sissi, Aptix CEO, confirmed the pending acquisition and said the two companies are currently in the process of ironing out the details.

"It's very exciting," El-Sissi said. "Aptix is a complimentary business for Mentor. We work side by side in many accounts. I feel very positive about the acquisition from a business point-of-view, a customer point-of-view and also an employees' point-of-view."

Aptix' troubles date back to a failed patent infringement lawsuit against Cadence Design Systems, which resulted in perjury charges against Aptix' former CEO, Amr Mohsen. Unable to pay legal fees to Cadence, Aptix filed for bankruptcy last year. El-Sissi became the new CEO of Aptix at that time.

Mohsen was jailed following an apparent attempt to flee the country, and later charged in an alleged murder-for-hire plot against a U.S. judge, adding even more negative publicity for the company as it struggled through bankruptcy.