Andor Acquires Photonic Instruments

Andor Technology plc has acquired Saint Charles, Ill.-based Photonic Instruments Inc., the spectroscopy and microscopy systems maker announced Friday. The purchase price was not disclosed.

Photonic Instruments makes laser and lamp-based illumination and ablation systems and is known for its Micropoint and patented Mosaic products in fluorescence imaging and laser ablation for confocal and widefield microscopy. Mosaic uses micromirror technologies, a patented technology that is the only way to provide simultaneous and precise illumination and ablation of multiple regions of interest, the company said.

Photonic’s MicroPoint system is based on traditional galvo-based scanning illumination and enables the user to graphically or numerically define and edit the shape and characteristics of the illumination at the target in microscopes.

"Photonic Instruments products are broadly recognized as the ultimate ablation and FRAP illumination systems, they complement and strengthen Andor’s Microscopy Portfolio, which we are continuously investing in," said Conor Walsh, chief executive of Andor.

The Photonic Instruments acquisition follows on heals of Andor's acquisition of Bitplane AG, a Zurich-based maker of 3-D and 4-D image analysis software, on Dec. 23, 2009.

"We believe that the combined offering of Andor’s systems products, Bitplane’s software and Photonic’s ablation and patented illumination products strengthens the position of each of the businesses and offers the customer a compelling proposition," said Robert Nowak, co-founder of Photonic Instruments.

The existing management and founders will remain with the business following completion of the acquisition, Andor said.

For more information, visit: www.andor.com