Beckman Coulter

Last updated
Beckman Coulter, Inc.
Formerly National Technical Laboratories
Company type Subsidiary
Industry Scientific instruments, Medical Devices
Founded Pasadena, California 1935;89 years ago (1935)
Founder Arnold O. Beckman
Headquarters Brea, California, United States
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Julie Sawyer Montgomery, President Diagnostics, Suzanne Foster, President Life Sciences
ProductsBiomek platforms, Synchron/AU analyzers, IRIS Immunochemistry system, VERIS, DxI immunoassay instruments, DxC chemistry instruments, DxH hematology instruments, Hemoccult, CEQ 2000 DNA Analysis System, Flow cytometers, Ultracentrifuge, Laboratory centrifuge
RevenueIncrease2.svg US$3.66B (FY 2010) [1]
Increase2.svg US$405M (FY 2010) [1]
Increase2.svg US$231M (FY 2010) [1]
Total assets Increase2.svg US$4.88B (FY 2010) [2]
Total equity Increase2.svg US$2.13B (FY 2010) [2]
Number of employees
12,000 (Worldwide)
Parent Danaher Corporation
Website www.beckmancoulter.com
A large laboratory centrifuge from Beckman. Beckman J2-MI.jpg
A large laboratory centrifuge from Beckman.

Beckman Coulter, Inc. is a Danaher Corporation company that develops, manufactures, and markets products that simplify, automate, and innovate upon complex biomedical testing. It operates in two industries: Diagnostics and Life Sciences. For more than 80 years, Beckman Coulter Inc. has helped healthcare and laboratory professionals, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, universities, medical schools, and research institutions worldwide.

Contents

The company eventually grew to employ over 12,000 people, with $5.8 billion in annual sales by 2017. It is currently headquartered in Brea, California. Beckman Coulter was acquired by Danaher Corporation in 2011.

History

The company was founded by Caltech professor Arnold O. Beckman in 1935 as National Technical Laboratories to commercialize a pH meter that he had invented.

In the 1940s, Beckman changed the name to Arnold O. Beckman, Inc. to sell oxygen analyzers, the Helipot precision potentiometer, and spectrophotometers. In the 1950s, the company name changed to Beckman Instruments, Inc.

In the 1950s, Beckman Instruments developed the EASE series of analog computers, [3] [4] two of which were used by NASA in the 1960s for real-time simulation during the development of the Apollo Guidance Computer. [5]

In 1954, Beckman Instruments acquired ultracentrifuge maker Spinco (Specialized Instruments Corp.). The Spinco division went on to design and manufacture a broad range of laboratory centrifuges. [6]

In 1955, Beckman established the seminal Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory as a division of Beckman Instruments to begin commercializing the semiconductor transistor technology invented by Caltech alumnus William Shockley. Because Shockley's aging mother lived in Palo Alto, California, the Shockley Laboratory was established in nearby Mountain View, California, and thus, "Silicon Valley" was born.

In 1961, Beckman acquired Offner Electronics, a company founded by inventor Franklin F. Offner.

In 1982, the company merged into SmithKline to form SmithKline Beckman, with Arnold Beckman as vice chairman, but regained its independence in 1989 after SmithKline merged with Beecham Group to form SmithKline Beecham (now part of GlaxoSmithKline).

In 1995, the company acquired Hybritech, Inc. from Eli Lilly.

In 1996, the company acquired the Sanofi portion of Sanofi Pasteur Diagnostics.

In 1998, the company acquired Coulter Corporation, a company founded by Wallace H. Coulter, the inventor of the Coulter counter. Beckman, thereafter, changed its name to Beckman Coulter.

By 2003, the company has more than 200,000 systems operating in laboratories around the world. [7]

In 2005, the company acquired Diagnostic Systems Laboratories (DSL) based in Webster, Texas.

In 2006, the company acquired Lumigen and Agencourt Bioscience.

In 2007, the company acquired the Flow Cytometry Business Group of Dako North America, Inc.

In 2009, the company acquired Lab-based Diagnostics business of Olympus Corporation Japan. That same year, the company moved its world headquarters from Fullerton, California to the newly renovated facility in Brea, California. [8]

In February 2011, Danaher announced that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement with Beckman Coulter. [9] On June 30, 2011, Danaher finalized the acquisition of Beckman Coulter. [10]

On September 12, 2012 Danaher acquired Iris Diagnostics and its parent company IRIS International, Inc. as leader in Urinalysis Diagnostic to further boost Danaher's Diagnostic business within Beckman Coulter. [11]

On February 1, 2015, the company finalized the acquisition of MicroScan from Siemens Healthcare. [12]

On January 3, 2019, Beckman Coulter Life Sciences announced the acquisition of Labcyte, Inc., a privately held manufacturer of acoustic liquid handlers.

On May 2, 2019, Beckman Coulter finalized their acquisition of EDC Biosciences, a privately held manufacturer of acoustic liquid handlers. [13]

Locations

Though each location specializes in distinct areas of the company, many projects are worked on by teams in multiple locations working together remotely. Besides their headquarters in Brea, California, Beckman Coulter serves worldwide & some of the major locations include

USA

United Kingdom

Canada

Czech Republic

Germany

Italy

Ireland

Switzerland

Japan

South Korea

Brazil

China

India

Russia

Turkey

South Africa

Australia

United Arab Emirates

Egypt

France

New Zealand

Russia

Sri Lanka

Asia Pacific

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Beckman Coulter (BEC) annual SEC income statement filing via Wikinvest.
  2. 1 2 Beckman Coulter (BEC) annual SEC balance sheet filing via Wikinvest.
  3. ↑ Beckmann EASE analog computer, Computer Museum at University of Amsterdam
  4. ↑ Beckmann EASE Computer, Science History Institute Museum & Library
  5. ↑ Madeline Sullivan: Hybrid Simulation of the Apollo Guidance and Navigation System, MIT 1965
  6. ↑ Arnold Thackray and Minor Myers Jr. ; foreword by James D. Watson. (2000). Arnold O. Beckman : one hundred years of excellence. Philadelphia, Pa.: Chemical Heritage Foundation. ISBN   978-0-941901-23-9.
  7. ↑ "Beckman Coulter, Inc". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 2020-08-06.
  8. ↑ Mueller, Mark (July 5, 2010). "Beckman Puts Former HQ Site up for Sale". Orange County Business Journal . 33 (27): 4.
  9. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-02-11. Retrieved 2011-02-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ↑ "Press Release | Investors | Danaher". phx.corporate-ir.net. Archived from the original on 2016-02-03. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
  11. ↑ "Danaher buys Iris to boost diagnostics business". Reuters. 2012-09-17.
  12. ↑ "MDDI Online". MDDI Online.
  13. ↑ "Agreement of Merger" . Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  14. ↑ "Официальный сайт Beckman Coulter Life Sciences - Beckman Coulter". www.mybeckman.ru. Retrieved 2020-12-18.
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