The acquisition is aimed at strengthening PerkinElmer's offering, enhancing the Health Sciences and Photonics group to meet the needs of the estimated $2.5bn (€2 bn) laboratory equipment aftermarket.
Clinical & Analytical Service Solutions, a UK company that provides maintenance on lab equipment used by life sciences companies is PerkinElmer's third acquisition this year.
In Feb, the company acquired Agilix's platform for quantifying molecules from numerous samples for $9m. They followed that up in April with the purchase of Spectral Genomics, a US outfit with technology to evaluate abnormalities in chromosomes. The cost was $12m.
PerkinElmer's expansion of a service is in response to the increasing demand for service partnerships that extend far beyond essential maintenance and repair of individual instruments.
In addition to the demand for higher productivity within the lab, compliance with regulatory requirements has significantly increased the complexity of installing instruments, qualifying operators, and documenting laboratory processes.
PerkinElmer earned $24m on sales of $355m in the first quarter of this year and is set to add C&A Services' revenue of $7.5m. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Under the OneSource service, staff will join PerkinElmer from C&A and will work on a broad spectrum of capabilities for a wide range of equipment platforms.
Through the acquisition, PerkinElmer gains complete access to C&A's databases of equipment maintenance solutions and performance histories. With this information OneSource can expand on the customised maintenance services it currently provides.
"The OneSource model enables customers to realise cost savings through more focused management of maintenance expense and asset management, while ensuring maximum uptime for their laboratories," said Robert Friel, president of PerkinElmer Life and Analytical Sciences.
"This strategic acquisition is a logical next step in our continued effort to help scientists keep their focus on their research results while we work on the operational front to maximise productivity, reduce costs and enhance compliance," he added.