Private equity firm GTCR has completed the acquisition of Cole-Parmer Instrument Company from Thermo Fisher Scientific.
Cole-Parmer, headquartered in Vernon Hills, Illinois, is a manufacturer and distributor of specialty laboratory equipment, instruments and supplies to a diverse range of customers in pharmaceutical, biotech, healthcare, chemicals, food and other research-based or regulated markets.
GTCR is partnering with life science industry veteran Bernd Brust to carve-out the business from Thermo Fisher and position the business for future growth.
Brust, former CEO of Qualicaps and, previously, chief commercial operations officer of Life Technologies Corporation (acquired by Thermo Fisher in 2014), will become the CEO of the business as a part of the transaction.
“We are delighted to partner with Bernd Brust as part of GTCR’s Leaders Strategy to acquire Cole-Parmer and carve the Business out of Thermo Fisher,” says Dean Mihas, managing director at GTCR. “We believe Cole-Parmer’s strong reputation, management team and portfolio of leading brands provides a unique position within the diverse end-markets it serves. We look forward to partnering with Bernd and investing behind his vision of building a leading company within the lab supply industry.”
“I am excited to partner with GTCR on this opportunity,” says Brust. “Cole-Parmer represents a compelling platform that is well-known within the scientific research and life sciences communities. I look forward to working with the existing Cole-Parmer management team to grow the Business through product development and acquisitions to extend its leadership position.”
GTCR’s investment in Cole-Parmer was funded from GTCR Fund XI, a private equity fund raised in 2014 with USD3.85 billion of limited partner equity capital commitments. Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs provided financing for the transaction. Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal counsel to GTCR.
