NEWS
COHERENT ACQUIRES ROFIN; MKS INSTRUMENTS BUYS NEWPORT
Laser maker Coherent has bought Rofin-Sinar Technologies for $942 million, while MKS Instruments, a supplier of process control solutions, has acquired photonics technology giant Newport for $980 million. The announcements come in a spate of
acquisition in the photonics sector, with Coherent’s purchase, in particular, making the company a major player in the industrial materials processing market. Coherent paid $32.50 per share, representing a
41.7 per cent premium on Rofin’s stock price as of 15 March. The acquisition, announced on 16 March,
meant Rofin postponed its 2016 shareholder meeting scheduled for the following day – a potentially explosive meeting because of the public row between Rofin and one of the company’s investors, Silver Arrow Capital Advisors. The transaction is expected to close within six
to nine months, subject to approval by Rofin stockholders. ‘The combination of Coherent and Rofin
represents a unique opportunity to strengthen Coherent’s position in materials processing,’ said John Ambroseo, Coherent’s president and chief executive officer. ‘The addition of Rofin’s complementary portfolio will build on Coherent’s capabilities as a world leader in laser and photonics-based technology and solutions, and create meaningful value for our stockholders.’ The combined company is likely to generate annual sales of around $1.3 billion; it will employ
around 5,000 staff before any headcount reductions take effect. The acquisition meant Rofin was able to
postpone a potentially difficult 2016 shareholder meeting, which would probably have been dominated by the ongoing public dispute with Silver Arrow Capital Advisors (SAC). The investment firm, which owned nine per cent of Rofin, had been campaigning for members to be elected to Rofin’s board of directors, after criticising Rofin’s management strategy as a reason for what Silver Arrow felt was underperformance in Rofin’s stock over the past five years. A few days before the meeting
was due to take place, Silver Arrow accused Rofin of covering up an embezzlement case, in which a former senior employee of the Rofin-Baasel subsidiary in the UK stole £2.5 million in 2015. Commenting on Coherent’s acquisition of Rofin,
Silver Arrow questioned whether the purchase price of $32.50 per share represents the best value to stockholders, suggesting a valuation in the high $30s to low $40s per share range. The MKS Instruments and Newport deal is
expected to generate approximately $1.4 billion in annual revenue for the combined enterprise, based on the two companies’ 2015 historical results. ‘The combination of MKS Instruments and Newport creates a premier supplier of critical
is expected to close within six to nine months
The transaction
components and subsystems for a diverse set of growing end markets, each with a common need for highly precise technology-enabling solutions,’ said Gerald Colella, MKS Instruments’ chief executive officer and president. ‘Our shared customer requirements and complementary technologies together with our increased scale will enable us to lead in our served markets, deliver innovative and cost-effective solutions for our customers, and drive profitable growth.’ Elsewhere, the 600 Group has purchased the remaining 20 per cent of Tykma, the US-based laser marking business of which it acquired 80 per cent in February 2015. The consideration will be satisfied by the issue of 12,000,000 1p ordinary shares in the 600 Group and $1.8 million in cash. The fully integrated Tykma
Electrox laser division is led by David Grimes who was the principal shareholder in Tykma and who remains as the laser division managing director. As part of the transaction, Grimes will receive 6,000,000 ordinary shares and $990,000 for his remaining shares in Tykma. Following the completion of the transaction
Grimes will have an interest in 7,500,000 ordinary shares representing 7.19 per cent of the enlarged issued share capital of the Group. The combined laser division reported an
operating profit of £0.63 million on revenues of £6.57 million for the six months from the acquisition to 26 September 2015.
Laser ablation system and micromachining company win Queen’s Award The company now operates
Several UK photonics companies have won Queen’s Awards for Enterprise, recognising a strong photonics sector in the UK. Among the recipients – which
included Gooch and Housego, M Squared Lasers, LEW Techniques, and Specialised Imaging – was Winbro Group Technologies, which won for the development of its HSA5 laser ablation system, and laser micromachining company Optek Systems, which was recognised for international trade. The HSA5 system integrates
post processing, ablation and inspection technologies within a single machine for the manufacture of complex shapes
10
in turbine components. Established in 1992, Winbro
provides manufacturing solutions to the aerospace and industrial gas turbine industries, based upon its core laser and high speed EDM cooling hole machining technologies. Aero-engine manufacturers
aim to increase operating temperatures of turbines and, in doing so, fuel efficiency, which requires effective cooling of components located in the hottest part of the engine. Winbro’s HSA5 system can machine cooling hole features in high performance alloys, with both metallic and ceramic coatings.
LASER SYSTEMS EUROPE ISSUE 31 • SUMMER 2016
from five factory units in Coalville, and has recently relocated its Winbro Advanced Machining business to a new 28,000 square foot facility in Shepshed. Winbro Group Technologies now has a total of 220 employees across the UK and USA operations. Abingdon, Oxfordshire-based
Optek Systems received its Queen’s Award for Enterprise in international trade. The company supplies laser
micromachining and optical fibre processing equipment and, since winning the Queen’s Award for Enterprise for the first time in 2011, its export business has
doubled, reflecting significant growth in US and Asian markets. Optek’s micromachining
business supplies laser systems for many markets – one example is the production of a medical device that has more than 140,000,000 holes per part, with each hole drilled to a precision of 1µm. Since 2011 OpTek has
augmented its overseas operations, adding offices on the US West Coast and facilities in Hong Kong and Dongguan, China. Mike Osborne, founder and
technical director at OpTek Systems, commented: ‘International trade is central to our business and this award
recognises the investments we’ve made in developing our network and the hard work and dedication of all our staff and partners.’ Also winning a Queen’s Award
was LPW Technology, which supplies metal powders for 3D printing with lasers. The company, based in
Runcorn, Cheshire, supplies and develops specialist materials for additive manufacturing for the aerospace, F1 and medical implant industries. LPW’s overseas sales have grown by 300 per cent during the last three years with the proportion of sales exported increasing to 70 per cent of total sales.
@lasersystemsmag |
www.lasersystemseurope.com
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