Better together? Ametek, Dresser-Rand, IntervalZero, Rexroth make acquisitions

In separate transactions, Ametek Inc. agreed to acquire the programmable power business of Xantrex Technology Inc., Bosch Rexroth will purchase Hagglunds Drives AB, Dresser-Rand Group Inc. acquired certain assets of Peter Brotherhood Ltd., and IntervalZero buys Ardence embedded software from Citrix.

By Control Engineering Staff August 15, 2008

In separate transactions, Ametek Inc. agreed to acquire the programmable power business of Xantrex Technology Inc., Bosch Rexroth will acquire Hagglunds Drives AB, Dresser-Rand Group Inc. acquired certain assets of Peter Brotherhood Ltd., and IntervalZero acquires Ardence embedded software from Citrix.
Ametek Inc. has agreed to acquire the programmable power business of Xantrex Technology Inc . for $120 million in cash. Based in San Diego, the Programmable Power Division is a leader in ac and dc programmable power supplies used to test electrical and electronic products, the companies say. Annual sales are estimated at $80 million.
The acquisition would significantly expand Ameteks position in the niche market for programmable power sources and provides further growth opportunities in the highly attractive electronic test and measurement equipment market, says Frank S. Hermance, Ametek chairman and chief executive officer.
The transaction, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions, is expected to should close in third-quarter 2008. The acquisition is not contingent on the recently announced sale of Xantrex Technology Inc. to Schneider Electric.
Xantrex Programmable Power’s power sources are used to test products by simulating various input voltages, frequencies and potentially harmful line transients. Its products are used in design verification testing, manufacturing, quality assurance, and regulatory compliance in a range of industries, including aviation, military, and general electronics.
Xantrex Programmable Power will join Ametek as part of its Electronic Instruments Group (EIG), which targets the process and analytical, aerospace, power, and industrial markets worldwide; it had 2007 sales of $1.2 billion. Ametek Inc. is based in Paoli, PA.
Bosch Rexroth will acquire Hagglunds Drives AB of Mellansel, Sweden, an international supplier of complete hydraulic drive systems, developer and manufacturer of drive system solutions for applications requiring high torque and variable speeds. The systems are used in a range of industries, such as mining, material handling, marine and offshore, recycling, sugar, and pulp and paper. In the renewable energies sector, Hägglunds Drives products drive machines that produce ethanol and feature in the first prototypes for generating tidal energy.
“The acquisition of Hagglunds Drives expands our industrial hydraulics portfolio, and by this we gain new potential in growing markets, such as renewable energies, and mining and materials handling,” said Dr. Albert Hieronimus, chairman of the executive board of Bosch Rexroth AG , which already offers a range of hydraulics solutions for industrial and mobile applications.
In 2007, Hagglunds Drives employed around 900 people and posted sales of approximately 200 million Euros. Additional production sites are located in San Antonio, TX, and Columbus, OH, in the U.S., plus in more than 20 countries and in around 50 sales and service offices. The contract was signed July 18; the acquisition is subject to approval by the authorities. Bosch Rexroth is based in Lohr, Germany.
Dresser-Rand acquires Peter Brotherhood assets : Dresser-Rand Group Inc ., announced that its UK subsidiary, Dresser-Rand Company Ltd., has acquired certain assets of Peter Brotherhood Ltd. The companies say they have strength in energy conversion markets. According to Vincent R. Volpe Jr., president and CEO of Dresser-Rand, the result will be “a comprehensive line-up of steam turbine and reciprocating gas compressor products backed by outstanding OEM parts and service.”
Peter Brotherhood specializes in the design and manufacture of steam turbines, reciprocating gas compressors, gas engine packaged combined heat and power systems (CHP), and gearboxes. Primary clients are in the worldwide oil and gas industry, specifically marine and floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO), refinery, petrochemical, combined cycle/co-generation, and renewable energy industries. Peter Brotherhood has a manufacturing facility in the United Kingdom, and traces its beginnings to 1867. It has an installed equipment base of approximately 750 units. Approximate sales for fiscal 2007 were pounds sterling 50.5 million.
The acquisition is consistent with Dresser-Rand’s business strategy to make acquisitions that strengthen and enhance core capabilities, add new products, services, and technologies, and provide access to new markets or enhance current market positions. The acquisition, complementary to Dresser-Rand’s products and services strategies, strengthens the company’s position in Europe and increases the size of the company’s installed base of equipment.
Dresser-Rand will acquire Peter Brotherhood assets for approximately pounds 31.1 million net of cash acquired. The agreement includes the potential for additional consideration based on an Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) earn-out for the fiscal year ending Nov. 30, 2008.
Dresser-Rand Group Inc., a global supplier of rotating equipment, is based in Houston, TX.
IntervalZero acquires Ardence embedded software from Citrix Systems Inc.: IntervalZero Inc . is a new embedded software company led by a group of senior Ardence executives.
IntervalZero’s team comprises the core of the Ardence embedded software group, and is said to include management, engineering, development, sales, marketing, finance and support professionals with knowledge of the customer base, products, and the embedded technology marketplace.
The CEO is Jeffrey D. Hibbard, an Ardence/Citrix executive with more than 20 years of software engineering, sales, marketing, and management experience. Hibbard says “selecting the name IntervalZero highlights our intense focus on continuing to develop innovative embedded products that deliver the real-time, instant-on functionality that has been embraced by thousands of customers worldwide, including Boeing, Siemens, Honda and Raytheon.”
IntervalZero completed the acquisition July 15 and will continue to market and sell embedded products under existing names of RTX, ETS, and Select. Worldwide Embedded Distribution/Reseller channels and Embedded Partner affiliations– notably strong partner relationships with Microsoft and Intel – remain in place.
IntervalZero’s roots– first as VenturCom Inc., later as Ardence Inc., and recently as part of Citrix – go back nearly three decades to the early days of embedded computing when VenturCom engineers developed embedded expertise that helped pave the way for Microsoft’s first embedded operating system, the company says.
IntervalZero Inc. is based in Waltham, MA.
–  Control Engineering News Desk
Register here and scroll down to select your choice of eNewsletters free .