Resonetics, a portfolio company of GTCR, has acquired the medical business unit (HTI Medical) of Hutchinson Technology, a subsidiary of TDK.
HTI Medical fabricates and assembles micro-components for medical devices used in minimally-invasive conventional and robotic surgery applications. The business employs more than 150 engineers, technicians and associates, and is based 60 miles west of Minneapolis in Hutchinson, Minnesota.
In addition to its medical business unit, Hutchinson Technology is a supplier of suspension assemblies for disk drives (used to precisely position the recording head above the disk); precision components for mobile devices; and connectors, atomic clock suspensions, and spring contacts for test sockets and probes. Hutchinson Technology was acquired by electronics giant and Japan-headquartered TDK in 2015 for $245 million.
Resonetics provides laser micro-machining manufacturing services for medical device and diagnostic companies, as well as to other markets requiring laser processing of polymers and glass.
The company’s capabilities include precision laser prototyping and manufacturing that can create features as small as one micron – a fraction of a human hair – in a variety of materials. According to Resonetics, it has the world’s largest capacity for laser micro-machining polymers in ultra-violet wavelengths. The company also designs, builds and services purpose-built laser workstations to meet specific customer needs.
Resonetics, founded in 1987 and led by CEO Tom Burns, is headquartered near Boston in Nashua, New Hampshire with five additional facilities in the US, and one each in Costa Rica, Israel and Switzerland.
Resonetics is owned by Regatta Medical which was formed by GTCTR and operating executive Chip Hance in April 2017 to acquire medical device manufacturing companies. Regatta acquired Resonetics from Sverica Capital Management in February 2018.
“Consistent with our initial investment thesis for Resonetics, the carve-out of HTI Medical strategically enhances Resonetics’ capabilities, and further establishes the company’s position as a leading supplier of specialized componentry for interventional medical device companies,” said Mr. Hance.
“We have great respect for what the HTI Medical team has built, and we look forward to our partnership with them,” said Sean Cunningham, a managing director at GTCR. “This represents Resonetics’ fifth acquisition since our initial investment, and we expect to continue to aggressively pursue tuck-in acquisitions as well as more transformative opportunities.”
Other recent Resonetics’ add-ons include Tru Tech Systems, a Michigan-based provider of precision grinding services for the medical device market and CNC grinding equipment for the machine tool industry (September 2019); and Caribou Technologies, a Minnesota-based provider of metal fabrication services to medical device manufacturers (February 2019). Caribou specializes in wires that are used in vascular intervention and minimally invasive surgery markets.
Since its founding in 1980, Chicago-based GTCR has invested more than $18 billion in over 200 companies. Sectors of interest include business services; technology, media & telecommunications; healthcare, and financial services & technology.
© 2020 Private Equity Professional | November 6, 2020
