Thermo Fisher Scientific [TMO] this month said it has agreed to acquire Ahura Scientific, a developer and producer of handheld analytical instruments used in defense, homeland security and industrial applications, for $145 million in cash.
The deal includes an earnout provision based on certain 2010 financial targets and is expected to be concluded in the first quarter of this year.
Ahura makes a range of portable instruments serving military and first responders, pharmaceutical and medical applications markets. Its products are based on two technologies, Raman spectroscopy and Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR).
Thermo Fisher has benchtop instruments that are based on Raman and FT-IR technologies but no handheld products. Thermo Fisher’s handheld instruments are based on X-Ray fluorescence technology. The various technologies have different ways to identify substances, although the Raman and FT-IR systems are able to identify a broader array of materials.
Ahura, which is based in Massachusetts, has 120 employees and posted $45 million in sales last year. Thermo Fisher said the acquisition would not be material to its 2010 financial results. Ahura is a portfolio company of Castile Ventures.