US-based Materion has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Optics Balzers in an all-cash transaction.
Materion is a supplier of specialty materials including alloys, beryllium products, composite/clad metals, thin film deposition materials, and precision optics. In 2019, the corporation generated total sales of around $1.2 billion.
Optics Balzers, with headquarters in Liechtenstein and sites in Germany and Malaysia, generates a total revenue of around $67 million per year. Optics Balzers is a privately-held industry partner for the development and production of coated optical components and sub-assemblies and a provider of optical thin film coating solutions.
The firm's shareholders decided to sell the company to Materion to align with the company’s growth strategy. Materion takes over 100 per cent of the shares.
'We are serving one of the most attractive growth markets and the key factor of success is growth', said Optics Balzer CEO, Detlev Haeusler. 'Thanks to the new shareholder, Optics Balzers will be able to implement the global expansion strategy more quickly, and better exploit opportunities.'
The transaction, which is expected to close in the third quarter of 2020. The markets and production sites of Optics Balzers will be an important part in Materion‘s Precision Coatings Division. The merged company will essentially contribute to achieve a higher market penetration based on a broader product portfolio.
Optics Balzers expects to benefit from Materion's sales strength in the USA, and Materion benefits from Optics Balzers’ market position in Europe. The current market development made clear that Optics Balzers could achieve its growth targets with an additional location in the USA, while the Optics Balzers plant in Malaysia fits into Materion’s road map. The market portfolio and regional presence complement each other well and show little overlap. Business potential can also be exploited in the field of technologies.
More growth thanks to acquisition
With this acquisition, Materion significantly expands its geographic reach in the optical coatings market, extending beyond its core of North America to include Europe and Asia. Complementary technologies across the electromagnetic spectrum boost the capabilities of the combined portfolio and position Materion is to capitalise on key megatrends in the areas of life sciences, consumer, and industrial.
'We have long held a deep amount of respect and appreciation for the Optics Balzers business. Their technical capabilities, product portfolio, end market, and geographic mix, combined with their talented leadership team make them the ideal partner to accelerate our global growth in optical coatings,' said Jugal Vijayvargiya, president and CEO of Materion.
'We are assuming that all employees in all sites will be taken over because the focus of the company’s acquisition is on growth rather than on cost reduction. The new owners are aware of the strong Optics Balzers brand value,' said Optics Balzers' Haeusler.
Credit Suisse served as financial advisor and Bär & Karrer as legal advisor to the sellers.
