ABB acquires pharmaceutical software
16 Oct 2000
ABB has agreed to acquire the rights and associated research and development resources – so-called strategic pharmaceutical software technologies – from Base Ten Systems of the US.
ABB is acquiring Base Ten's Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) software, which is used in manufacturing pharmaceutical products. The acquisition will expand ABB's Industrial IT capabilities in the sector. Base Ten is headquartered in Trenton, New Jersey, in the United States, and employs some 40 people in its MES-related activities, including an office in Mechelen, Belgium.
Base Ten's ME/CS (Pharm2 and Pharmasyst) and Flowstream (FS) products, alongside Base Ten's international project services team, will allow ABB to extend its offerings to final 'product' pharmaceutical production. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
MES systems are used to integrate industrial automation systems on the plant floor with higher level IT systems, like ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and document management systems.
By expanding into the 'finishing' end of the pharmaceuticals manufacturing process, ABB expects to create synergies with other parts of its business, such as robotics and flexible automation. The acquisition also gives ABB a system offering that spans the entire pharmaceuticals manufacturing process.
ABB's total sales in industrial automation for the global pharmaceuticals market is currently about US$ 90 million a year.
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