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BASF takes over Equateq Ltd

BASF has announced the acquisition of Equateq Ltd., a global leader in the manufacture of highly concentrated omega-3 fatty acids. With the acquisition, BASF extends its portfolio of omega-3 products for the pharmaceutical and dietary supplement industries with a new offering of highly concentrated omega-3 fatty acids.

Equateq has a production site located on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland with 47 employees. Equateq with all its employees will be integrated into the Pharma Ingredients & Services unit, which is part of BASF’s Nutrition & Health division. The integration is expected to be completed by the end of 2012. Equateq’s proprietary chromatographic separation methods allow flexible formulation of omega-3 fatty acids at exceptional purity levels. “Equateq’s technologies will enable us to customise fatty acid concentrates with variable ratios of EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) at concentration levels of up to 99% purity. This is unique in the market,” explained Martin Widmann, senior vice-president, Pharma Ingredients & Services at BASF. BASF believes that highly concentrated omega-3 fatty acids are a global growing market. Increasing consumer awareness of the health benefits of omega-3 is fueling double-digit growth for omega-3 products in the years to come. Visit: www.basf.com

AAK acquires Crown Foods

AAK – one of the world-leading producers of high value-added specialty vegetable oils and fats – has acquired Crown-Foods AS. Crown-Foods is a Scandinavian market leader producing sauces and dressings for Food Service customers.

“This acquisition is an integral part of the AAK Acceleration program, which calls for organic growth as well as selective acquisitions. The acquisition of Crown-Foods will strengthen our ability to supply a broader portfolio of Food Service products, which is a major benefit to both existing and new customers,” says Arne Frank, president and CEO of the AAK Group.

“Crown-Foods is a natural addition to AAK Food Service. With the company’s focus on quality and with a product portfolio that is gaining market shares in Scandinavia, it fits very well with our strategy to increase semispeciality and speciality volumes,” says Søren Ask Nielsen, managing director Food Service Continental Europe.

Founded in 1988 and located in Mørkøv, Denmark, Crown-Foods employs approximately 20 people and had a turnover of approximately SEK 60 million in 2011. Visit: www.aak.com

Aker Solutions buys Lyngdal Mek. Verksted

Aker Solutions is acquiring the mechanical workshop company Lyngdal Mek. Verksted (LMV), thereby increasing its capacity to assemble, test and overhaul drilling equipment especially for the North Sea market. This is the second recent acquisition by Aker Solutions’ drilling technologies business in its home region, following the takeover of Herman Hansen Mek. Verksted in March 2012.

“The takeover of Lyngdal Mek. Verksted is the latest example of our strategic moves to boost our capacity to serve drilling customers in the North Sea market. The acquisition of LMV will help us take a larger share of the upcoming overhaul market, facilitated by our growing installed base,” said Thor Arne Håverstad, head of Aker Solutions’ drilling technologies business. Visit: www.akersolutions.com

PartnerTech acquires Aerodyn AB

PartnerTech has acquired Aerodyn AB, a company focused on contract manufacturing of heavy components for ship propulsion with propeller systems or water jets.

The company’s estimated yearly turnover is approximately SEK 40 million and it will be consolidated into the Machining operating segment from the second quarter 2012. Aerodyn employs some 20 people and is based in Karlskoga, Sweden.

“The aim of the transaction is to broaden our customer base within Machining as well as develop our offering within the Defence and Maritime market area. Aerodyn’s deep expertise in advanced machining of large components is an excellent complement to our existing offer. The acquisition of Aerodyn means that PartnerTech can offer component weights from a few grams to several tonnes manufactured in accordance with high customer requirements in our units in Sweden and Poland,” says Leif Thorwaldsson, president and CEO of PartnerTech. Visit: www.partnertech.com

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Dassault Systèmes to buy Gemcom Software International

Dassault Systèmes has announced its intent to acquire geological modeling and simulation company Gemcom Software International (Gemcom) for approximately USD 360 million. Privatelyheld Gemcom is the world leader in mining industry software solutions, headquartered in Vancouver.

“With the acquisition of Gemcom, coupled with our 3D Experience platform capabilities, our objective is to model and simulate our planet, improving predictability, efficiency, safety and sustainability within the Natural Resources industry and beyond,” said Bernard Charlès, president and CEO, Dassault Systèmes.

After the closing of the transaction, Gemcom’s 360 employees and management will remain in place and continue serving the mining industry. In addition, Gemcom’s current offices will further extend the overall geographic reach of Dassault Systèmes in Australia, Africa, Canada, South America, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Indonesia and Russia. Visit: www.3ds.com

Mettler-Toledo and Konica Minolta join forces

Mettler-Toledo and Konica Minolta Sensing have announced a strategic partnership in the field of Multi-parameter Analysis for the Flavours & Fragrances industry. The partnership will bundle the CM-5 or CR-5 Spectrophotometer from Konica Minolta with the Density, Refractive index and pH instruments from Mettler-Toledo to provide a complete system for automatic quality monitoring of raw materials and finished goods.

In contrast to heavy solutions, the benefits of the newly offered system are modularity and flexibility. The modular design of Mettler-Toledo LiquiPhysics allows for the bundling of different measurement instruments: Density Meters, Refractometers, pH- or Conductivity-Meters can be freely combined for a simultaneous determination of the needed parameters. Measurements of all instruments can be started with a single click on the user-friendly touch screen display. Sampling, cleaning and drying of the whole system is done completely automatically with the powerful automation units. The CM-5 and the basic model CR-5 are compact and flexible spectrophotometers from Konica Minolta Sensing. These instruments are now integrated in the Mettler-Toledo LiquiPhysics system. Visit: www.mt.com

Hexagon acquires Norwegian software company myVR

Hexagon AB, a leading global provider of design, measurement and visualisation technologies, has acquired all shares in the Norwegian company My Virtual Reality Software AS (myVR). myVR provides software that offers a solution for 2D, 3D and 360-degree viewing for desktop and mobile. The company has developed a patented technology platform that enables high-resolution real-time viewing of interactive maps over networks with limited bandwidth. The platform makes it possible to view large-scale models on any 3D hardwaresupported client platform, including mobile phones and tablets.

“The acquisition of myVR will be of great value for Hexagon’s current offerings. Everything is going mobile, including our customer offerings,” said Ola Rollén, president and CEO, Hexagon AB. “In the past, the problem with displaying 3D data on a mobile device such as a tablet has been size limitations of data transfers, and also the ability to handle the transfer in a real-time environment. myVR has a unique solution to this problem, and Hexagon will make use of its technology in all of our divisions.” Visit: www.hexagon.com

Wärtsilä sells its share in MW Power to Metso

Wärtsilä and Metso have agreed that Wärtsilä will sell its 40 per cent share in the joint venture MW Power Oy to the other joint venture party Metso. After the closing of the transaction, MW Power will be wholly owned subsidiary of Metso.

Wärtsilä will follow its strategy and focus on engine-based power plant solutions. Wärtsilä is a major supplier of flexible power plants operating on various liquid and gaseous fuels. The Wärtsilä portfolio of power plants covers the capacity range from one to more than 500 MW. Wärtsilä and Metso signed a contract in September 2008 to form a joint venture combining Metso’s Heat & Power business and Wärtsilä’s Biopower business. According to the contract, Metso owned 60 per cent and Wärtsilä 40 per cent of the joint venture, which supplies small and medium sized heat and power plants for the European market, and focuses on renewable fuel solutions. MW Power has approximately 250 employees in Finland, Scandinavia, the Baltics and Russia. Visit: www.wartsila.com