Merck Millipore Strengthens Bioscience Business by acquiring Amnis Corporation

Merck Millipore announced it has agreed to acquire Seattle-based Amnis Corporation. Amnis designs, manufactures and markets high speed cell imaging instrumentation. The technology is used in flow cytometry applications in academic, biotech and pharmaceutical cell analysis and research. Amnis has 40 employees and generated sales of USD 14 million (EUR 10 million) in 2010. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and closing is expected to take place in the fourth quarter of 2011. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

"Amnis' technology will put Merck Millipore at the forefront of cell analysis by providing us access to break-through, combined imaging flow cytometry, addressing several unmet needs in the field of cell analysis and systems biology," said Jonathan DiVincenzo, head of Merck Millipore's Bioscience business unit. "Today there are no comparable alternatives that enable our customers to combine flow cytometry and image analysis in one integrated solution. With this acquisition, Merck Millipore becomes the only provider of this technology." The acquisition significantly enhances Merck Millipore's product portfolio in the attractive growth segment of flow cytometry. Specifically, the business will complement Merck Millipore's existing Guava product range, a business Merck Millipore acquired in 2009. "With Amnis we acquire a business with a talented workforce, a strong intellectual property position, and unique know-how which will position us to create tremendous value for our customer's research outcomes in the flow cytometry workflow," added DiVincenzo.

David A. Basiji, co-founder and CEO of Amnis, commented: "The combination of Amnis with Merck Millipore will greatly accelerate development of novel applications in imaging flow cytometry, enhance our customer support, and accelerate product development." William E. Ortyn, Amnis' co-founder and President, added: "We look forward to becoming a member of Merck of Germany and the new possibilities to pursue compelling opportunities in both the life science research and clinical markets."

Source: Merck KGaA