Pirus Networks, a startup in the storage networking space, today announced closing of a $27 million funding round, bringing its total to $45 million. The startup also announced the acquisition for an undisclosed sum of Blue Spruce Networks, a software engineering firm in Wichita, Kansas (see Pirus Gets $27M, Buys Software Firm).
The funding round includes a contribution (amount undisclosed) from storage service provider StorageNetworks Inc. (Nasdaq: STOR). The investment deal isn't exclusive in any way, however. StorageNetworks also has invested in StorageApps, which makes SAN gateways, and Vicom, which makes routers for use in SANs (storage area networks).
Other investors in Pirus include Veritas Software, which makes file management software for SANs. Earlier-round investors include Bessemer Venture Partners, BlueStream Ventures, and Morgan Keegan & Company Inc., among others.
Pirus says it will use its money to fund an assault on the SAN market sometime during the second quarter of this year. "We're growing our organization, including the sales and marketing teams, and developing and testing our first- and second-generation products," says CEO Rich Napolitano. The company has already grown from 12 employees in 1999 to more than 100 today. And the firm recently announced plans to double its headquarters space in Acton, Mass., to encompass 46,000 square feet.
Pirus won't be specific about what it's doing, but Napolitano says the product includes hardware designed to link different types of data networks (including IP, gigabit Ethernet, and Fibre Channel) to different kinds of storage systems.
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