Dionex Acquisition

Thermo Fisher Scientific and Dionex Corporation announced in December unanimous approval for a transaction under which Thermo Fisher are to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Dionex for a total purchase price of approximately $2.1 billion. Completion is expected in the first quarter of 2011. Thermo Fisher is predicting total operating synergies of $60 million in year three following the transaction’s close through a combination of cost savings and revenue enhancements, a report said.

Dionex, which introduced the first ion chromatography system for water analysis shortly after its founding in 1975 has more than 1,600 employees in 21 countries spanning six continents, including a significant presence in the Asia-Pacific region. Dionex will be integrated into Thermo Fisher’s Analytical Technologies Segment.

"We believe the combination of Thermo Fisher and Dionex is extremely compelling from a technology, market and financial perspective," said Marc N. Casper, President and Chief Executive Officer of Thermo Fisher. "Dionex’s strength in chromatography instruments, software and consumables complements our leading positions in mass spectrometry and laboratory information management systems. The transaction, which we expect to be immediately accretive, is consistent with our strategy of accelerating growth by increasing our depth of capabilities to serve attractive end markets. Specifically, it complements our strong presence in China, where we’ve established the headquarters for our global environmental instruments business and continue to build our commercial infrastructure to meet the needs of customers in growing water quality, consumer safety and life sciences markets."

"We are pleased to be joining Thermo Fisher and are excited about the opportunities we will have as part of the world leader in serving science," said Frank Witney, President and Chief Executive Officer of Dionex. "Thermo Fisher’s commitment to innovation will fuel our ongoing technology development, and their global manufacturing and commercial presence will significantly strengthen our ability to deliver quality products and services to our customers around the world. This transaction offers immediate and significant value for our shareholders, as well as the opportunity for our customers and employees to benefit from combining two highly complementary organisations. We look forward to working closely with the Thermo Fisher team to ensure a smooth transition and complete the transaction as expeditiously as possible."