"piecemeal acquisition" is a correct and usable phrase in written English.
You can use it when describing the process of acquiring something in small, incremental pieces rather than all at once. This could apply to physical items, such as a collection of artwork, or to abstract concepts, such as knowledge or skills. Example: The company's expansion into new markets was achieved through a piecemeal acquisition of smaller, local businesses rather than a single large purchase.
The formation of the empire was thus an unorganized process based on piecemeal acquisition, sometimes with the British government being the least willing partner in the enterprise.
Layer this perspective on top of "cheap money-driven" M&A and you get the piecemeal acquisition of increasingly more bolt-on IT infrastructure and the data it produces.
In 2003, Olympus made a piecemeal acquisition of an information technology group, ITX.
For several years our breast unit has evaluated indeterminate breast microcalcification using stereo-guided vacuum-assisted core biopsy (VACB) - piecemeal acquisition of unorientated tissue.
In selected patients, our Unit has recently moved from handheld ultrasound-guided vacuum-assisted core biopsy (VACB) piecemeal acquisition of tissue to the handheld Intact Breast Lesion Excision System (Intact).
If it works, one has to abandon any picture of knowledge acquisition as piecemeal and incremental.
So when Chase announced late last month that it had agreed to buy the obscure Beacon Group for an estimated $450 million -- an investment banking boutique started by Geoffrey T. Boisi, a former star at Goldman Sachs -- it looked to some like yet another expensive acquisition in a piecemeal attempt at building an investment banking presence.
This lack of management depth coincides, says Mr Radford, with Wal-Mart "trying to manage a complete U-turn on international strategy from piecemeal organic growth to aggressive acquisition".The difficulty for Mr Leighton and his new masters is that Wal-Mart's success in North America will be hard to replicate in Europe.
Yet, this is a piecemeal strategy that forsakes using excess cash flow to make big acquisitions.
Many people retire piecemeal.
Current funding is piecemeal.
