ALLENTOWN, Pa., March 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- B. Braun Biotech Inc., an American subsidiary of Sartorius AG (SRT, SRT3, Frankfurt Stock Exchange) will go by a new company and brand name in the Americas, effective today. The U.S.-based company will be named Sartorius BBI Systems Inc. With its parent company Sartorius BBI Systems GmbH, based in Germany, it is a leader in the manufacture and marketing of fermenters and bioreactors for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology markets worldwide.
In related news, the American company announced today that, as part of its expansion plans for the U.S. market, it is nearing completion on a new 85,000- square-foot corporate headquarters and ultra-modern production facility near its current Pennsylvania headquarters. The new facility, which will be one of the largest of its kind in the world, will open in mid-2004.
Sartorius Group acquired B. Braun Biotech in the year 2000, substantially extending its portfolio as a supplier to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries by adding the equipment components for fermentation and cell culture technology. Today’s name change brings the U.S. subsidiary in line with the new marketing strategy that Sartorius AG implemented globally from its headquarters in Germany late last year. The company is streamlining its worldwide image to reduce complexity and strengthen the core brand. The new name brings together the well-established international acronym BBI with Sartorius, and thus reflects the successful integration of B. Braun Biotech into the Sartorius Group.
A profile of Sartorius BBI Systems Inc.
Sartorius BBI Systems Inc., based in Allentown, Pennsylvania, is the U.S. subsidiary of Sartorius BBI Systems GmbH, headquartered in Melsungen, a city in the northern part of the German state of Hesse. The German company was founded in 1987 and acquired in 2000 by Sartorius AG based in Goettingen, Germany. The core areas of expertise of Sartorius BBI Systems are in the development and production of fermenters and bioreactors for applications in the laboratory, in production and in the corresponding automation and controlling units. Sartorius BBI Systems supplies the pharmaceutical| and biotechnology industries worldwide. With a workforce of more than 400 persons, the company has production sites in Germany, Italy, the U.S., and India, and has sales operations in more than 50 countries. A profile of Sartorius AG Sartorius AG is an internationally leading process technology supplier covering the segments of biotechnology and mechatronics. In 2003, the technology group earned sales revenue of 442.3 million euros (preliminary result). The Goettingen, Germany-based company founded in 1870 currently employs about 3,700 persons. Its biotechnology segment focuses on filtration and separation applications, fermenters and proteomics. The mechatronics segment offers products for measurement and automation technology in laboratory and industrial applications. Sartorius’ key customers are from the pharmaceutical, chemical, and food and beverage industries, and from numerous research and educational institutions and organizations. Sartorius has its own production facilities in Europe, Asia and America as well as sales subsidiaries and local representatives in more than 110 countries.
Sartorius BBI Systems Inc.
CONTACT: Media - Michele Pavlinsky, Sartorius BBI Systems Inc.,1-800-258-9000, Michele.Pavlinsky@sartorius.com
Web site: http://www.sartorius-bbi-systems.com/
