In a move to beef up its enterprise content and document output management offerings, EMC said Thursday it will acquire Document Sciences Corp.

EMC, which said it will pay $85 million to buy the company, has offered Document Sciences' xPression product suite since May 2005 on its EMC Documentum 5.3 platform.

Document Sciences' document output management software simplifies personalized communications among customers, partners, and suppliers. EMC noted that the acquisition will work with and extend its effort in the transactional content management (TCM) market.

Businesses are increasingly using records management, archiving, automated document output management, and business process management systems, and the acquisition will enable EMC to offer the full range of TCM "in an all-in-one integrated suite," said Mark Lewis, president of EMC's content management and archiving division. "Building on our recent commitment to deliver end-to-end solutions to solve real-world business problems, Document Sciences provides a tremendous advantage in addressing transaction-intensive applications such as loan origination, new account enrollment, wealth management, brokerage, and claims processing."

By utilizing xPression, customers are able to improve the design and implementation of business communications through the integration of CRM, ECM, and ERP systems, EMC said. For instance, customers can use xPression to create and deliver highly personalized communications, including marketing collateral and correspondence.

Jack McGannon, president and CEO of Document Sciences, said his company has more than 500 major customers, including many using future-generation xPression suites for high-volume and real-time interactive document generation.

EMC said it plans to operate Document Sciences as a business unit within its EMC content management and archiving division. The acquisition is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2008.