$1.5 B merger of two historic scientific instrument makers could spell consolidation wave

Agilent Technologies and Varian are combining in a $1.5 billion deal that could spell a wave of consolidation in the scientific instrument market.
The two companies are the seminal firms of SiliconValley’s original instrument-focused technology business. Agilent was the chip equipment and instrument making division of Hewlett Packard, founded in 1939 as the first tech firm in Silicon Valley, while Varian was founded by brothers Russell and Sigurd Varian in 1948.
The deal is expected to be approved by the end of the year. Santa Clara, Calif.-based Agilent will pay $52 a share in cash for Palo Alto, Calif.-based Varian Inc.’s stock, a 35 percent premium over the company’s closing price on Friday.
Agilent spun off from HP in 1999. It makes devices used in things like testing chips and cell phones, food inspection, and drug development. It has more than $5 billion in revenues last year, while sicentific instrument maker Varian had more than $1 billion in revenues. It was spun off in 1999 from sister companies Varian Medical Systems and Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates. Neither of those companies is involved in the deal.
The companies compete against Thermo Fisher Scientific in Waltham, Mass.