Yokogawa and SICK widen co-operation

ACHEMA three years ago saw the establishment of a collaboration and distribution agreement between Yokogawa and SICK, covering the Sick process analytical instrumentation in the European market, because the product portfolios of the two companies were complementary. This strategy has been successful, and at ACHEMA this year the two companies announced that the agreement would be widened to a global scale.

Seizo Nakamura, Business Development Manager for the Analytical Products Business Division at Yokogawa, stated that the collaboration of Yokogawa and Sick has been well received by the customers in the field of process analytical instrumentation and has significantly improved the ability of Yokogawa to provide turnkey process and environmental automation solutions for process industries from a single supplier.

In addition, Dr Michael Markus, Head of Marketing and Sales of the Sick analyser division, pointed out that the collaboration with Yokogawa has allowed Sick to broaden their market position as a solution provider in process analytics. This is accomplished by the addition of the Sick analytical product offering to the Yokogawa specific process analytical applications and system integration know-how to provide a total solution. As the logical consequence of three years of trustful and successful collaboration of their European headquarters and sales subsidiaries, both companies are taking the next important step to a global distribution agreement.

In March 2012, Dr Norbert Zeug, formerly a staff member at Yokogawa Europe, was appointed Strategic Industry Manager for the chemical and hydrocarbon processing industries at Sick: he has been nominated at the liaison manager for this future co-operation.

Eaton Corp acquires Cooper Industries

At the end of May, the Eaton Corp announced an agreed take-over bid for Cooper Industries, in a deal worth a quoted $11.8Bn, to be finalized in late 2012. Their statement suggests “the deal will significantly increase the capabilities and geographic breadth of the combined company’s power management portfolio and electrical business”.

The combined company, Eaton Global or a similar name, will be incorporated in Ireland, and led by Alexander M. Cutler, Eaton’s current chairman and ceo. “This compelling combination of Eaton’s power distribution and power quality equipment and systems with Cooper’s diversified component brands, global reach and international distribution creates a game changer to serve the electrical industry,” said Cutler: “This combination significantly expands our ability to better serve our customers with their demands for critical energy saving technologies as they address the impact of the world’s growing energy needs.”

It was in the November INSIDER last year, as well as on http://www.iainsider.com, that the start of an Eaton media campaign was reported, which seemed designed to change the historically modest culture and image of Eaton, growing a sharper image backed by flashy corporate videos. What came out of that presentation, actually themed as an “Oil and Gas Technology” day, was that most of the specific oil and gas developments from Eaton involved their Hydraulics business. On the electrical side their involvement is via MV and LV cabinets, switchgear and power systems through MEM in the UK, and Moeller in Europe, two of their relatively recent acquisitions. So the Crouse-Hinds hazardous area enclosures business in Cooper (quoted by Eaton as achieving $1Bn in sales) which contains the original Measurement Technology (MTL) business in intrinsically safe barriers and network protection, will remain the main focus for oil and gas process control and automation expertise within the expanded group. Within Cooper Bussmann, the wireless systems business, based around the ELPRO acquisition in Australia, deals with industrial wireless systems in the utilities, process and factory automation.

The combined company would have had historical 2011 revenues of $21.5 billion and EBITDA of $3.1 billion: they also expect to gain $535m in synergy savings in combining the operations, by 2016. The deal will be financed by cash, debt and equity, with Cooper shareholders owning 27% of the combined company, and with $6.75Bn of bridge financing. It was suggested that this borrowing will be repaid by several tranches of term debt, worth up to $5Bn, and by “the possible sale of assets”. For such asset sales to be significant, the sums involved need to be around $1Bn: so which parts of the business are not in the core?

Readers of the INSIDER will know which businesses appear to be up for sale.

Endress+Hauser acquires SpectraSensors

With the acquisition of the US company SpectraSensors, Endress+Hauser is tapping into the market for gas analysis. This further reinforces the position of the Swiss Group in the area of analytical measurements and in the oil & gas industry.

SpectraSensors Inc with headquarters in Houston, Texas, and production facilities in Rancho Cucamonga, California, develops, manufactures and distributes laser-based gas analytical instrumentation. The devices are used in natural gas pipelines and plants, petrochemical refineries and chemical plants as well as for atmospheric monitoring. The company employs about 90 people and generates annual sales of approximately 30 million US dollars.

“With SpectraSensors we are expanding our range in the field of analytics to include liquids and gases. In addition, we are strengthening our position as a supplier to the oil & gas industry,” confirms CEO Klaus Endress, emphasizing the strategic dimension of the acquisition. “Gas analysis will play an important role in many future key markets, for example in safeguarding energy supplies – a significant and growing business.” The CEO also sees possible applications in other customer industries. He expects potential synergies in worldwide sales and services, in addition to technology.

 Pioneer in laser measurement engineering

“SpectraSensors is a leading company in the field of absorption spectroscopy with tunable diode lasers,” explains Managing Director George Balogh, who will continue to head the company. “We have pioneered the development of this technology.” Founded in 2001, SpectraSensors is a spinoff of NASA’s renowned Jet Propulsion Laboratory and was mainly owned by institutional investors. The parties agreed not to disclose the purchase price.

SpectraSensors remains an independent company. “Under the mantle of the Endress+Hauser Group we are able to position ourselves better in the global market,” stresses George Balogh. Today, the company shows a strong market presence in the United States. Endress+Hauser will expand sales and service of the gas analyzers to additional countries. SpectraSensors’ product portfolio is also set to grow.

SpectraSensors

SpectraSensors Inc with headquarters in Houston, Texas, USA, is a leading manufacturer of optical gas analyzers for the process engineering industry. The company uses lasers and optics in products to analyze gas quality, measure humidity and monitor air quality. The devices are used in natural gas pipelines and plants, petrochemical refineries and chemical plants. They measure humidity (H₂O), carbon dioxide (CO₂), hydrogen sulfide (H₂S), oxygen (O₂), the hydrocarbon dew point and other parameters.

For further information, please visit www.spectrasensors.com

This announcement was made on 26th June 2012, just too late to make an announcement at ACHEMA!