Sartorius Stedim Biotech seeks to acquire TAP Biosystems Group Plc
Sartorius Stedim Biotech wants to further expand its portfolio of single-use fermentors through the purchase of the U.K.-based company
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AUBAGNE, France—Sartorius Stedim Biotech, a globalsupplier for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, on Oct. 7 made a cashoffer to acquire the U.K.-based company TAP Biosystems Group plc through itswholly owned subsidiary Sartorius Stedim Biotech GmbH. The proposedtransaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions, including theapproval of TAP's shareholders, values the equity of TAP Biosystems atapproximately €33 million. The transaction has been unanimously approved by theboards of directors of both companies and is expected to close at the end of2013.
"TAP Biosystems' fermentors are a great fitextending our reach into the small scale cell culture applications," said JoachimKreuzburg, the chief executive of Sartorius Stedim Biotech. "Addingcapabilities in the early steps of upstream bioprocessing will enable us toprovide our biopharma customers highly effective and scalable solutions toaccelerate cell line selection, speed up process development and ultimatelyhelp them bringing their biologics to market faster."
TAP Biosystems specializes in the design anddevelopment of small-scale, multi-parallel fermentation systems, particularlyfor biopharmaceutical applications. With its ambr product family, the companyhas launched a novel platform technology for single-use fermentation that isdesigned to mimic mammalian cell culture at small scale, which Sartorius Stedimcalls "a highly innovative alternative to conventional systems."
Furthermore, TAP Biosystem's portfolio includesautomated cell processing systems and other bench top equipment. Founded in1987, the company is headquartered in Royston, United Kingdom, and has a salesand support facility near Wilmington, Del., in the United States. TAP Biosystemsgenerated sales revenue of approx. €26 million in 2012/13 and employs about 160people worldwide.
Welcoming the acquisition, David Newble, CEO ofTAP Biosystems, said, "As a market leader in bioprocessing technologies with astrong position in fermentation, Sartorius Stedim Biotech is well-placed tomaximize the opportunities of our novel, highly innovative cell culturetechnologies. We look forward to joining such a well-recognized organization asSartorius Stedim that will enable us to grow our business further with a wealthof complementary technologies and products."
SOURCE: Sartorius Stedim news release
