Scott Suttell
CRAIN'S CLEVELAND BUSINESS
Published: August 5, 2014 10:48 am ET
Updated: August 5, 2014 10:54 am ET
Image By: Avalon Laboratories Holding Corp.
Avalon Laboratories Holding Corp. produces catheters and medical tubing.
Westlake, Ohio-based Nordson Corp. said it agreed to pay $180 million for a Los Angeles company that makes catheters and medical tubing products for cardiology, pulmonology and related applications.
The acquisition of Avalon Laboratories Holding Corp. “is expected to be financed with availability under existing credit facilities,” Nordson said in a news release. The transaction is expected to close within two weeks.
Michael F. Hilton, Nordson president and CEO, said in the release that Avalon “brings Nordson another stream of high value recurring revenue and further reduces our exposure to more cyclical end markets.” He said Avalon “has generated double-digit compound annual growth rates in revenue and EBITDA since 2008 through a combination of innovative products, unique intellectual property, process know-how, strong customer relationships, and scalable low cost manufacturing.”
Avalon, founded in 1990, will become part of Nordson’s Advanced Technology Systems segment. The company has about 400 employees at its Los Angeles headquarters and at a manufacturing plant in Guaymas, Mexico.
Nordson said Avalon’s Polymer Solution Casting manufacturing technology enables it to “produce seamless one piece tubing of varying wall thicknesses and in complex geometric designs. The technology also enables Avalon to embed specialized customer-specific features within its tubing, including multiple lumen, kink resistance and advanced imaging capabilities.”
Nordson, a maker of precision dispensing equipment for applying industrial coatings, expects the acquisition to be accretive to earnings in the first full year of operation. | 
