Bruker acquires Center for Tribology

Bruker Corporation today announced the closing of its acquisition of Center for Tribology, Inc. (CETR) for $13 million in cash as an initial purchase price, with potential additional earn-out payments of up to $4 million in cash, depending on growth and profitability of the CETR-business within Bruker in 2012 and 2013. CETR, a privately held tribology and mechanical testing company headquartered in Campbell, CA, with 30 employees, has now become a part of the Bruker Nano Surfaces division, joining the current AFM (atomic force microscope) and SOM (stylus and optical metrology) businesses. Dr. Norm Gitis, the founder and CEO of CETR, has joined Bruker as Vice President and General Manager of the new Bruker Tribology & Mechanical Testing (TMT) business.

Frank Laukien, President and CEO of Bruker Corporation, stated: "We are very excited about the addition of CETR's highly regarded tribology, mechanical testing and nano-indenting expertise and product lines. With these additional industry-leading systems, Bruker is continuing its commitment to provide the world's most innovative selection of high-performance, applications-enabling instrumentation. We cordially welcome Dr. Gitis and our new colleagues."

"Our current customers are interested in materials structure and mechanical property relationships, and with nearly a 50% overlap between CETR's customers and our own, we are delighted to add CETR technology to our common offering," said Mark R. Munch, Ph.D., President of the Bruker Nano Surfaces division. "I am confident that the synergistic combination of CETR core competencies with our own AFM, optical and stylus instrumentation expertise will increase our market penetration while enabling our global customers to continually advance their research and products."