July 5, 2005, Washington, D.C. and Wetzlar, Germany--Danaher Corporation signed a definitive agreement to purchase Leica Microsystems AG from LM Investments S.à r.l. The purchase price amounts to an enterprise value of approximately Euro 450 million (US$535 million).
The acquisition is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the third quarter.
"This transaction makes strong strategic and financial sense for both companies," said H. Lawrence Culp, Jr., Danaher president and CEO. "Leica Microsystems'
technology in high precision optical instrumentation and its well-known brand will extend Danaher's Professional Instrumentation segment into life sciences while complementing our existing critical care diagnostics and dental businesses."
Leica Microsystems is a leading global designer and producer of high-tech precision optical systems for the analysis of microstructures. The company offers system solutions in the areas of life science including biotechnology and medicine, as well as the science of raw materials, industrial quality assurance and the semiconductor industry.