Danaher Corporation

History

Early years

The company's origins go back to DMG, Inc., a Massachusetts real estate investment trust organized in 1969. In 1978, DMG, Inc. was reorganized as a Florida corporation and changed its name to Diversified Mortgage Investors, Inc. In 1983, the Rales brothers invested in the company, which at that time was invested in retirement home developments, they then replaced the existing management in a bitter proxy battle.

In 1984, the company adopted the name Danaher and reincorporated under the Delaware General Corporation Law.

In 1985, the Rales brothers offered $400 million in a hostile bid for Scott Fetzer Company but lost out to Berkshire Hathaway.

In June 1986, Danaher acquired Chicago Pneumatic in a hostile takeover, offering $60.8 million for the 32% of the company not already owned. The company had merged in July 1984 with a sister company, the Jacobs Manufacturing Co., and had purchased Matco Tools in April 1981.

In June 1987, Danaher sold Chicago Pneumatic while retaining Jacobs, including its Matco Tools Division. Jacobs' name was changed to Matco Tools Corp. In November 1991, the other divisions within Jacobs were established as separate operating companies. In January 1993, Danaher formed NMTC, Inc., which acquired a substantial portion of the assets of MTC, including the existing distributorship agreements of MTC.

In 1986, Danaher added Qualitrol to its instrumentation unit, including Gilbarco Veeder-Root's underground fuel storage sensors, Dynapar's motion sensors, and pressure measurement and temperature measurement instruments used on the electrical transformer industry.

1990–2000

In 1990, Danaher acquired Easco Hand Tools Inc. Danaher was selected as exclusive supplier of hand tools for Sears. In 1994, Danaher acquired Armstrong Tools, the makers of tool brands Armstrong, Allen, and others.

In 1995, Danaher acquired Hengstler GmbH, a manufacturer of counters, printers, relays, and high-precision rotational sensors. Hengstler was Danaher's first acquisition headquartered outside the United States.

In 1999, the company acquired Hach Company, involved in water and wastewater—and analytics, for $325 million.

2001–2010

In 2000, H. Lawrence Culp Jr. was named CEO of Danaher; he had joined the company in 1990.

Danaher acquired Trojan Technologies, an environmental engineering firm, in 2004.

Danaher also acquired UK-based West Instruments, which provides control and measurement instrumentation and services for the global industrial and process markets.

Danaher announced its agreement to acquire the Gendex division from DENTSPLY International on December 11, 2003, with the acquisition closing in early 2004, integrating this dental imaging company into Danaher's growing dental portfolio.

PMA, a German manufacturer of control and measurement instrumentation, was acquired in April 2005.

In July 2005, Danaher acquired Leica Microsystems, which manufactures products for applications requiring microscopic imaging, measurement and analysis and offers management systems for biotechnology and medicine, as well as the science of raw materials and industrial quality assurance.

In early 2007, Danaher acquired Vision Systems, which manufactures and markets automated instruments, antibodies and biochemical reagents for biopsy-based detection of cancer and infectious diseases, for $520 million.

In July 2007, Danaher acquired ChemTreat.

In November 2007, Danaher made its largest acquisition to date, the purchase of Tektronix for US$2.85 billion.

In 2009, Danaher acquired the Analytical Technologies business unit of MDS, including a 50% interest in AB SCIEX, for US$650 million. In February 2010, Danaher acquired the remaining 50% ownership position in AB SCIEX from Life Technologies for US$450 million.

2011–2020

In 2011, Danaher acquired Beckman Coulter, which was divided into a diagnostics segment and a life sciences segment.

In January 2012, Danaher sold Accu-sort to Datalogic.

In December 2012, Danaher acquired Navman Wireless, a provider of on-demand fleet and asset management technology.

In February 2013, Danaher and Cooper Industries sold their joint venture, Apex Tool Group, to Bain Capital for $1.6 billion.

In September 2014, Danaher acquired Nobel Biocare for $2.2 billion.

Effective March 1, 2015, H. Lawrence Culp Jr. resigned as CEO of Danaher.

In July 2015, Danaher combined its communications unit with NetScout Systems.

In August 2015, Danaher acquired Pall Corporation for $13.8 billion.

In June 2016, Danaher completed the corporate spin-off of Fortive, which included Matco and AMMCO-COATS. In September of the same year, the company announced it would acquire Cepheid for $4 billion including debt.

In October 2016, Danaher acquired Phenomenex for $700 million to expand in life sciences.

In October 2017, Danaher announced the acquisition of scientific informatics company ID Business Solutions Ltd. (IDBS). IDBS became part of Danaher's Life Sciences platform.

In March 2018, Danaher acquired Integrated DNA Technologies for an estimated $1.9 billion.

In July 2018, Danaher announced its intention to spin off its Dental segment into a public company, later named Envista Holdings Corporation. The corporate spin-off was completed in December 2019.

In March 2020, Integrated DNA Technologies, a subsidiary of the company, manufactured components for COVID-19 testing.

In March 2020, Danaher acquired the biopharma business of General Electric, a global provider of technologies and services related to the development, manufacture, and delivery of vaccines, diagnostics, and therapeutics to customers in organizations including academia, biotechnology, and drug manufacturing, for $21.4 billion and was rebranded as Cytiva. To satisfy the Federal Trade Commission, Danaher sold its biomolecular characterization, chromatography hardware and resins, microcarriers and particle validation standards businesses to Sartorius AG for approximately $825 million. The Cytiva name is derived from 'cyto' meaning 'cell' in Greek, and 'iva' a Latin suffix meaning 'doing' and 'capable of'.

Effective September 2020, Tom Joyce retired as CEO of the company; he was replaced by Executive Vice President Rainer Blair.

2021–present

In June 2021, Precision Nanosystems was acquired by Cytiva.

In August 2021, Danaher acquired Aldevron, which produces mRNA and proteins used in mRNA vaccines, for $9.6 billion in cash.

In May 2023, Pall Corporation merged with Cytiva to create a new Biotechnology Group within Danaher; at that time Cytiva employed more than 16,000 associates in over 40 countries.

Also in September 2022, Danaher announced its intention to spin off its Environmental & Applied Solutions segment; in February 2023, it was named Veralto and the corporate spin-off was completed in September 2023. The division included Aquatic Informatics, ChemTreat, Esko, Hach Company, Linx, McCrometer, OTT HydroMet, Pantone, Sea-Bird Scientific, Trojan Technologies, Videojet, XOS, and X-Rite.

In December 2023, Danaher acquired Abcam for approximately $5.7 billion.

In June 2024, the Food and Drug Administration granted marketing approval to Danaher's Cepheid unit for a rapid test for hepatitis C. Using a blood sample from a fingertip, the rapid test detects the virus's RNA and delivers results in less than roughly an hour, as opposed to requiring a sample to be sent to a lab.

In August 2024, the company acquired GeneData.

Controversies

Controversy has arisen regarding the pricing of test cartridges manufactured by Danaher's subsidiary, Cepheid. These cartridges are essential for detecting diseases such as COVID-19, HIV, and tuberculosis. Organizations such as Treatment Action Group and Doctors Without Borders have asked Cepheid to lower the price of these tests since 2019.

On September 12, 2023, author and vlogger John Green released a video highlighting these ethical concerns and calling on his community to reach out to Danaher. One week later, Cepheid and Danaher announced a 20% price reduction for the Xpert MTB/RIF TB test cartridge, from $9.98 to $7.97, in high TB-burden countries. However, the price of the Xpert MTB/XDR test used to diagnose for drug-resistant TB, which is the deadliest form, remained unchanged at $14.90.

Divisions

Life sciences

• Abcam
• Beckman Coulter - Life Sciences
• Cytiva
• Integrated DNA Technologies
• Leica Microsystems
• Molecular Devices
• Pall Corporation
• SCIEX

Diagnostics

• Beckman Coulter - Diagnostics
• Cepheid
• Leica Biosystems
• Radiometer

References

References

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10. (April 5, 2016). "Interview with Raj Karanam, President at Qualitrol". Transformers Magazine.
11. (February 21, 1990). "Danaher Acquires Easco Hand Tools". [[The New York Times]].
12. (November 22, 1994). "COMPANY NEWS; DANAHER AGREES TO BUY TWO COMPANIES".
13. "Hengstler's Success Story". [[Hengstler GmbH]].
14. Behr, Peter. (April 22, 1999). "Danaher to Buy Colo. Firm In $325 Million Stock Deal". [[The Washington Post]].
15. (April 23, 1999). "COMPANY NEWS; SHARES OF HACH JUMP 65% ON NEWS OF DEAL WITH DANAHER".
16. "H. Lawrence (Larry) Culp, Jr.". [[General Electric]].
17. (September 21, 2004). "Trojan to be taken over by U.S. firm Danaher". [[The Globe and Mail]].
18. https://investors.danaher.com/2003-12-11-Danaher-Corporation-Agrees-to-Acquire-Gendex
19. (April 1, 2005). "Danaher buys PMA to bring European controllers to North America". Control Engineering.
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22. Blackwell, John Reid. (July 8, 2007). "Buyout Enriches Workers". [[Richmond Times-Dispatch]].
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24. (October 16, 2007). "Danaher to Buy Tektronix for $2.85 Billion". [[The New York Times]].
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26. (February 1, 2010). "Danaher Completes Acquisition of AB SCIEX and Molecular Devices". [[PR Newswire]].
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28. (January 20, 2012). "Danaher Corporation : Completes Accu-Sort Systems, Inc. Divestiture". Publicnow.
29. (January 29, 2013). "Navman Wireless Acquired by Danaher Corporation". [[PR Newswire]].
30. (February 1, 2013). "Bain Capital Private Equity Completes Acquisition of Apex Tool Group, Leading Global Tools Manufacturer". [[Bain Capital]].
31. (September 15, 2014). "Danaher to Buy Nobel Biocare for $2.2 Billion". [[Reuters]].
32. (June 12, 2019). "GE's Larry Culp Faces Ultimate CEO Test in Trying to Save a Once-Great Company". [[Bloomberg News]].
33. "NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTCT) has completed the acquisition of Danaher Corporation's (NYSE: DHR) Communications Business". [[NetScout Systems]].
34. (October 14, 2014). "Danaher to combine communications unit with NetScout". [[Reuters]].
35. (August 31, 2015). "Danaher Completes Acquisition of Pall Corporation". [[Pall Corporation]].
36. (May 15, 2015). "Danaher to Acquire Pall for $13.6 Billion and Split into Two". [[The New York Times]].
37. (July 2, 2016). "Fortive Completes Separation from Danaher and Launches as an Independent, Publicly Traded Company". [[Fortive]].
38. (September 6, 2016). "Danaher to Acquire Cepheid for $4B". [[Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News]].
39. (October 11, 2016). "Danaher Completes Acquisition of Phenomenex".
40. (October 30, 2017). "Danaher picks up U.K. data analytics player to boost drug development offerings". [[FierceBioTech]].
41. Baigorri, Manuel. (October 30, 2017). "Danaher to Buy U.K. Drug R&D Software Firm ID Business Solutions". [[Bloomberg News]].
42. (March 9, 2018). "Danaher to Acquire Integrated DNA Technologies". [[Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News]].
43. Reisch, Marc S.. (March 19, 2018). "Danaher buys oligonucleotide maker Integrated DNA Technologies". [[Chemical & Engineering News]].
44. (July 19, 2018). "Danaher Announces Plan to Spin Off Dental Business into an Independent, Publicly Traded Company". [[PR Newswire]].
45. (December 18, 2019). "Danaher Announces Final Results Of Envista Exchange Offer". [[PR Newswire]].
46. Hansen, Drew. (December 20, 2019). "Danaher parts ways with dental business, recouping billions in stock". [[American City Business Journals]].
47. (March 16, 2020). "IDT Achieves Large-Scale Manufacturing Success of Key COVID-19 Test Component". BioSpace.
48. (March 31, 2020). "Danaher Completes Acquisition Of The Biopharma Business Of General Electric Life Sciences; Business Will Be Called Cytiva". [[PR Newswire]].
49. (April 30, 2020). "Sartorius Stedim Biotech Completes Acquisition Of Selected Assets Of Danaher's Life Sciences Portfolio". [[Reuters]].
50. Macdonald, Gareth John. (May 12, 2020). "Sartorius' Acquisition of Danaher Techs Fits Demand for Process Intensification". [[Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News]].
51. "GE Healthcare Life Sciences rebrands to 'Cytiva'".
52. Neibauer, Michael. (May 6, 2020). "Danaher names next CEO". [[American City Business Journals]].
53. (June 1, 2021). "Precision NanoSystems joins Danaher's Life Sciences Platform". Cytiva.
54. (August 30, 2021). "Danaher Completes Acquisition of Aldevron". [[PR Newswire]].
55. Nadeem, Dania. (June 17, 2021). "Danaher to buy Moderna supplier Aldevron for about $9.6 billion". [[Reuters]].
56. (May 2, 2023). "Cytiva and Pall Life Sciences complete integration to create a global innovation and solutions leader in biotechnology".
57. Sterling, John. (May 2, 2023). "Merger of Cytiva and Pall's Life Sciences Business Now Complete". [[Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News]].
58. (September 30, 2023). "Danaher Corporation Completes Separation of Veralto Corporation". [[PR Newswire]].
59. Maffei, Lucia. (October 3, 2023). "Veralto, the latest Bay State public company, makes market debut". [[American City Business Journals]].
60. (October 2, 2023). "Veralto Begins Trading as Public Company". [[Veralto]].
61. (December 6, 2023). "Danaher completes $5.7 billion acquisition of Abcam". [[Reuters]].
62. Mishra, Manas. (August 28, 2023). "Danaher to buy Abcam in deal valued at $5.7 billion".
63. (June 27, 2024). "FDA Permits Marketing of First Point-of-Care Hepatitis C RNA Test". [[Food and Drug Administration]].
64. (August 19, 2024). "Genedata Joins Danaher Corporation". GeneData.
65. Green, John. (September 12, 2023). "Barely Contained Rage: An Open Letter to Danaher and Cepheid". [[Vlogbrothers]].
66. Baker, Kamrin. (September 12, 2023). "John Green & Grassroots Activists Pressure Danaher To Drop Price of Tuberculosis Test".
67. (September 14, 2023). "Novelist John Green Launches Attack on Cepheid over the Price of Its TB Test".
68. (September 19, 2023). "MSF: TB test price reduction by Cepheid and Danaher is a step in the right direction". [[Doctors Without Borders]].
69. Mahdavi, Darius. (September 19, 2023). "'Pure Price-Gouging': Advocates celebrate price drop of critical TB test but say Big Pharma needs to do more".