At the heart of the acquisition are CRi’s preclinical multiplex analysis platform and suite of tissue imaging technologies which will significantly broadening the Caliper’s discovery offering according to CEO Kevin Hrusovsky.
"This acquisition extends the reach of Caliper's proprietary offerings along the in vitro to in vivo bridge by filling the gap in tissue analysis platforms,” citing the “billion dollar” tissue imaging and digital pathology markets as key growth areas.
Other benefits, according to Caliper, include CRi’s relationships with the likes of Pfizer, Merck & Co and Novartis, as well as academics at Stanford and Baylor College of Medicine who use its Nuance, Vectra and Maestro for imaging analysis.
The deal, which is worth around $20m (€14.8m), will result in the closure of CRi’s manufacturing facility in Woburn, Massachusetts in mid-2011, with operations being transferred to Caliper’s HQ in nearby Hopkinton.
Caliper said it will offer 49 CRi employees, 75 per cent of its current workforce, positions when the takeover is completed early next year, and added that it expects to incur costs of between $2.5m and $3m.
CRi is expected to generate revenue of $12m for 2010, which is roughly equivalent to the $14m provided by Caliper’s imaging business for the most recently reported quarter, the three months ended September 30.
The CRi takeover is the second time Caliper has expanded this part of its business in the last six months, behind the launch of its mouse imaging software earlier in the year.