Brooks Automation Completes the Acquisition of PRI Automation
Shareholders give approval of the acquisition which makes Brooks-PRI the single largest automation supplier to the semiconductor industry.
CHELMSFORD, Mass., May 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Brooks Automation, Inc. (Nasdaq: BRKS - News), which delivers total automation for the semiconductor and related industries, today announced that it completed the acquisition of PRI Automation (Nasdaq: PRIA - News), a leading supplier of automation systems and software for the semiconductor industry, on May 14, 2002. New company name is Brooks-PRI Automation, Inc., and it will continue to trade under the ticker symbol BRKS on the NASDAQ stock market. The transaction is a tax-free, swap of stock valued at $536 million at a fixed ratio of 0.52 shares of Brooks to 1 share of PRI. With combined fiscal year 2001 revenues of $650 million, Brooks-PRI is roughly double the size of its nearest competitor and the world's eleventh largest semiconductor capital equipment supplier according to a survey released in April 2002 by the independent market research firm, Gartner Dataquest.
"Through the acquisition of PRI, Brooks gains key technologies in the areas of atmospheric robotics, reticle automation, factory software and fab infrastructure support to strengthen our leadership position in the markets that we already serve, as well as giving us an entry into the area of automated material handling systems," said Robert J. Therrien, president and CEO of Brooks-PRI Automation. "The greatest asset of this combined organization is the newly created pool of intellectual capital that is dispersed worldwide. The new company, Brooks-PRI, is uniquely positioned to deliver total automation to the semiconductor industry, enabling our customers to accelerate their time to market, reduce risk and increase their operational efficiency. We feel strongly that the automation market growth forecasted over the next four years and our product positioning in this market represents a major opportunity for Brooks-PRI and its shareholders."
About Brooks-PRI Automation, Inc.
Brooks-PRI (Nasdaq: BRKS - News) delivers total automation to the semiconductor and related industries. The company's hardware, software and services can manage every wafer, reticle and data movement in the fab, helping semiconductor manufacturers accelerate time-to-market while reducing their risk and increasing their operational efficiency. Brooks-PRI products can be found in virtually every fab in the world. For information, visit brooks-pri.com.
"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: The foregoing discussion contains forward-looking statements related to future financial results and speaks only of the Company's expectations as of the date of this press release. The forward-looking statements involve several known and unknown risks and uncertainties including, without limitation, risks relating to the benefits of the merger of PRI Automation Systems, Inc., into Brooks Automation, Inc. ("the Company") the continued success of the combined Brooks-PRI Automation, Inc. (the "Company") in the marketplace, the Company's ability to capitalize on PRI Automation's technology, the financial contribution of the acquired business, the ease of integrating PRI Automation into the Company, the Company's dependence on the cyclical semiconductor industry, the highly competitive nature and rapid technological change that characterize the industries in which the Company competes, and other risks and uncertainties described in the Company's reports and registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. As a result, there can be no assurance that the Company's future results will not be materially different from those projected. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any such statement to reflect any change in the Company's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based. |
