Company Announcements

Andor Technology, an Oxford Instruments company, appointed Gary Wilmot, director of Engineering, as managing director in March. He replaces Conor Walsh.

Hitachi High-Technologies announced in April the establishment of a Mexican subsidiary to accelerate business development in the automotive and industrial markets.

In April, EMD Millipore announced a new, nonexclusive preferred-distribution agreement for Western Europe with VWR. The contract replaces an exclusive chemical distribution agreement. VWR remains the company’s distributor of choice through December 2018.

Eppendorf’s 2013 sales declined 3.4%, 0.4% excluding currency, to €502.7 ($670.3 million = €0.75 = $1) (see IBO 4/15/14). Sales to North and South America fell 6.4% excluding currency to account for 35% of revenues. Sales to Asia/Pacific/Africa and Europe grew 2.3% and 3.6% on a currency-neutral basis to make up 25% and 40%, respectively. Adjusted operating profit fell 6.9% to €101.8 million ($135.7 million).

Anton Paar completed in April a €17 million ($24 million), 13,333 m2 assembly center in Graz, Austria, for streamlined manufacturing, which will house 220 staff. In 2013, revenues totaled €202 million ($269 million).

QIAGEN announced in April that it will combine its three Maryland sites, which employ 550 people, into two campuses and invest $10 million in the new locations. The Germantown site will become a research, manufacturing and office site for molecular diagnostics.

In April, Analytik Jena named Michel Alric as managing director of its French subsidiary. He previously served as sales manager, Europe, the Middle-East and Africa, at GE Water & Process Analytical Instruments.

GE Healthcare Life Sciences orders rose 1% in the first quarter, according to GE’s conference call.

In April, the University of Queensland in Australia announced that Dr. Ryan Taft, head of the Genomics and Development of Disease Division of its Institute for Molecular Bioscience, was named Illumina’s director of Scientific Research.

In May, Smiths named Richard Ingram, former CEO of Zodiac Aerospace—Electrical Systems, as president of Smiths Detection. He replaces Brian Jones, who was named Group Commercial director.

Fiscal 2014 sales for Hitachi High-Technologies Science and Medical Systems (SMS) grew 13.2% to ¥150.4 billion ($1.50 billion = ¥100.25 = $1) to account for 24% of revenues. Excluding currency and the acquisition of SII NanoTechnology (see IBO 12/15/12), organic sales fell in the upper single digits. Sales of Other Scientific Instruments climbed 58.0% to make up 18% of SMS sales. Biotechnology Products and Others sales grew 9.4% to represent 9%. Medical Products sales grew 9.5% to make up 53%. Electron Microscopes sales slipped 1.7% to account for 20%. SMS fiscal 2015 revenue is projected to decline slightly to ¥149.4 billion ($1.46 billion).