Agilent Restructuring EM

In response to a 30 percent drop in global demand for its products, scientific test and measurement company Agilent Technologies Inc. announced a major restructuring of its electronic measurement (EM) business and a further restructuring of its Semiconductor & Board Test segment. The moves are expected to cut another 2700 jobs.

Agilent said revenue for fiscal 2009 in the EM segment, which makes tools primarily used to test communications networks, is expected to be down about 30 percent from 2008 to the lowest level in the company’s 10-year history.

Revenue in the Semiconductor & Board Test segment is expected to be down more than 50 percent from last year and off 65 percent from its peak volume. The company’s bioanalytical measurement business, which provides instruments and software used in the life sciences and chemical analysis, is not affected by the restructuring.

“We have been very aggressive to date in addressing the downturn in electronic measurement markets,” said Bill Sullivan, Agilent president and CEO. “However, business remains severely depressed, and there are no prospects for a meaningful recovery in the foreseeable future. Therefore, we have no choice but to resize our electronic measurement businesses for the realities of the marketplace.”

The company said the action would save it $300 million a year in the EM segment and $10 million in Semiconductor & Board Test. The restructuring will affect approximately 2700 of its 19,000 employees and cost about $160 million.

“For Agilent to realize its full potential, we must have a financially healthy company and a solidly profitable Electronic Measurement business. We will move quickly to resize the EM businesses to the new business levels, align resources to the best market opportunities and position the company for the new economic environment,” Sullivan said.

The job cuts are the company’s third since December and will bring the total to about 3800 positions, or 20 percent of its work force.

Agilent also announced that, to conserve cash, it was temporarily suspending its share repurchase program until the end of its 2009 fiscal year.

For more information, visit: www.agilent.com