Halma buys cataract surgery device maker

9th Mar 2011 07:02

Acquisitive engineering conglomerate Halma has its cheque book out again, and is buying Swiss company Medicel, a designer and manufacturer of single-use injector devices for Intra Ocular Lenses (IOL) used for cataract surgery.Halma is initially paying SFr.70.0m (£46.6m) for Medicel and its subsidiary, Robutec, though this figure may be adjusted, depending on the level of net tangible assets in the acquired companies when the ink on the contract is dry.Deferred purchase consideration of up to SFr.30m (£20.0m) is payable based on earnings growth over the three financial years to March 2014.Robutec is a specialist medical device assembly and packaging business and is Medicel's largest supplier. Medicel and Robutec will operate as a single company within Halma's Health and Analysis sector as part of the Health Optics group of businesses.Profit before tax from Medicel & Robutec combined in 2009 was SFr.8.5m (£5.1m), and adjusted gross assets at the end of 2009 were SFr.7.6m (£5.1m).The results for 2010 are expected to show at least 10% growth in keeping with performance in recent years.Halma said the acquisition will be earnings enhancing, and the existing key management figures, including the previous owners, will remain with Medicel following the acquisition.""Medicel and Robutec further extend our presence in the ophthalmic surgical instrument market which is forecast to see continued growth due to an ageing population and increased global access to healthcare," said Halma's chief executive, Andrew Williams. "Cataracts are the leading cause of treatable blindness in the world, with approximately 15m surgeries performed annually. There is a migration towards single-use IOL injectors where Medicel have established a strong market position with products that allow surgeons to use a smaller incision size leading to improved patient safety and outcomes," Williams added.