Verder Group, Haan, Germany, has entered into an agreement to acquire the American Microtrac, Inc. and the Japanese MicrotracBEL Corporation from Nikkiso Co. Ltd. This move will allow Verder’s Scientific Division to extend its portfolio with product lines for particle characterisation by laser diffraction, dynamic light scattering and surface analysis.

Microtrac is a leading manufacturer and pioneer of instruments for particle analysis using laser diffraction and dynamic light scattering technologies. The instruments are used both for industrial applications and material research. The company has two facilities in the USA located in Montgomeryville, PA, and York, PA, where it develops and manufactures all products. MicrotracBEL is a leading manufacturer of instruments for surface area and porosity analysis applying adsorption technologies. It has three facilities in Japan located in Osaka (headquarters), Tokyo and Nagoya.

Verder Scientific, a division of the Verder Group – a family-owned conglomerate – is constantly on the lookout for strategic investments, creating stable, highly competitive instrument business companies focusing on niche markets. The Microtrac and MicrotracBEL portfolio will complement the activities of Verder Scientific by adding more than 150 employees and more than 35 million euros in revenues, creating a larger footprint within the particle characterisation market. Microtrac and MicrotracBEL will benefit immediately from the direct market access of Verder in key countries worldwide and from synergies with the other product lines of Verder Scientific. “Both companies will have access to additional resources to push international expansion and extend their innovative product ranges”, explained Dr Jürgen Pankratz, CEO of Verder Scientific.

In keeping with Verder Group’s established acquisition strategy, the newly acquired companies will not only maintain their headquarters in the USA and Japan but these locations will also be used to support further expansion of the Verder Group. The existing Mictrotrac and MicrotracBEL management teams will continue to be in charge. www.verder-scientific.com
 

Hiroshi Nakamura, executive vice president of Nikkiso Co. Ltd (left)
and Andries Verder, owner of the Verder Group

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