Agilent Acquisition FAQ
General Questions
What did Agilent Technologies and Stratagene announce on June 7?
Agilent Technologies and Stratagene Corporation have completed the Agilent acquisition of Stratagene, a developer, manufacturer and marketer of specialized life science research products and its Hycor diagnostic products division. Under the terms of the agreement, Agilent has acquired all assets of Stratagene, including key technology, and has retained current employees.
What are the financial terms of the transaction?
Under the terms of the agreement, Agilent paid approximately $250 million for Stratagene, or $10.94 per share of common stock.
Who is Stratagene?
Stratagene, an Agilent Technologies Company, is a developer, manufacturer, and marketer of specialized life science research and diagnostic products. The company's life science research unit supports advances in science by inventing, manufacturing and distributing products that simplify, accelerate and improve research. These products are used throughout the academic, industrial and government research sectors in fields spanning molecular biology, genomics, proteomics, drug discovery and toxicology. The company's diagnostic unit, Hycor, develops and manufactures products for urinalysis as well as high quality automated enzyme immunoassay instrument and reagent systems that use blood samples to test for allergies to more than 600 specific allergens, and to aid in the diagnosis of autoimmune disorders (www.hycorbiomedical.com).
Stratagene revenues in FY06 were $95.6 million. Stratagene employs approximately 440 employees worldwide. More information about Stratagene is available at www.stratagene.com.
Why did Agilent acquire Stratagene?
Stratagene's development and manufacturing capabilities for specialized life science research and diagnostic products strengthen Agilent's role as a Life Sciences company and support our commitment to help customers get better results, faster than ever. Additionally, the acquisition offers Agilent an entry into a broader customer base, and the ability to offer our customers more complete solutions for their workflow requirements. The Hycor diagnostic unit offers Agilent a urinalysis and immunology product portfolio in the growing allergy and autoimmune markets. Hycor operations are ISO 13485 certified and GMP compliant and can serve as manufacturing sites for emergent Agilent diagnostic products.
Why did Stratagene choose to be acquired by Agilent?
The two companies are a good fit because they have complementary strengths. Agilent offers Stratagene a global infrastructure and access to many new customers from which to expand its business within the life sciences market. Agilent products are also complementary to Stratagene's and provide more complete workflow solutions for our customers.
In lay person's terms, what are Stratagene's products, what are Hycor's products and how do they work?
Stratagene's product portfolio includes reagents, kits and instrumentation for many laboratory techniques including cloning, gene expression, nucleic acid purification, PCR, protein expression, quantitative PCR as well as laboratory tools and software to complete the laboratory workflow.
Hycor manufactures test kits to detect antibodies in patient's blood that cause allergic reactions to house dust, pollen, animal hair, feathers, foods and such, which are called allergens. A sample of patient blood is mixed with a sample of the suspected allergen and patient antibodies, bound to the allergen are detected. In a similar manner, Hycor manufactures test kits to detect antibodies in blood that cause autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis or Lupus (SLE). These test kits are used on the HY●TEC 288 Plus instrument which automates the testing procedure.
Customer, Partner and Distributor Questions:
What does this mean for Hycor customers, partners and distributors?
Stratagene/Hycor customers, partners and distributors should not expect to see any significant impact resulting from the acquisition by Agilent. Customers of both companies should benefit from a larger portfolio of products and solutions to address their workflow requirements. Agilent plans to continue to offer all Hycor customers outstanding sales and support for their products.
When will Hycor customers, partners and distributors be notified of the acquisition?
Hycor and Agilent are in the process of notifying all parties of the close and that they should continue to conduct business with the respective companies as usual.
Who should customers call to place new orders?
Customers should continue to contact Hycor to order Hycor products. The customer service number is 800-382-2527 and the website is www.hycorbiomedical.com/site/contact.html.
Hycor customers in Europe and Asia-Pacific should continue to contact their existing distribution channel. A complete list of these distributors can be found on the website www.hycorbiomedical.com/site/distributors/index.html or contact us at cs@hycorbiomedical.com.
For Agilent products, customers should continue to contact their current Agilent sales representative. The Agilent toll-free number for product information and ordering is: 800-227-9770. Online ordering information is at http://www.chem.agilent.com/Scripts/Phone.asp or to find a local contact, please go to http://www.chem.agilent.com/scripts/cag_feedback.asp.
Where should customers go for information on Hycor' products?
Continue to go to the Hycor website at www.hycorbiomedical.com.
Who do I make my purchase order out to Hycor or Agilent?
Currently to Hycor.
Will my contact numbers and email address' change for Hycor?
No, currently all contact information will remain the same, however you can expect email address changes before the end of 2007.
Is my Hycor quotation still valid?
Yes
Will my Hycor customer account number change?
Currently no.
Will the Hycor website change or move to the Agilent website?
The Hycor website will remain and will not have any functional changes. There will be a link between the two company websites for your convenience.
Will Hycor and Agilent continue to sell and support Hycor products?
Yes. Hycor and Agilent will continue to develop and support Hycor's current product lines.
We do not expect any immediate support changes for existing products as a result of the closing of the acquisition. Customers will be informed as soon as possible if there is a change in contact information.
How will warranty and support for products already purchased be handled?
Agilent is committed to a high quality of ongoing customer support with minimal, if any, disruptions.
Hycor will continue to support all Hycor products; the Hycor toll-free number for support is 800-382-2527
Agilent will support all Agilent products; the Agilent toll-free number for support is: 800-227-9770.
Will Agilent provide the same personalized level of customer service customers have come to expect from Hycor?
Hycor and Agilent remain committed to a high quality of ongoing customer support and you should notice minimal, if any, disruptions.
Will the sales reps for Hycor customers change?
We do not anticipate any changes at this time. Customers will be informed as soon as possible if there is a change in their sales contact or general contact information for any reason.
What does this acquisition mean for Agilent customers?
Both Agilent and Hycor customers can look forward to a more comprehensive portfolio of products and solutions.