Endress+Hauser acquires Blue Ocean Nova

Endress+Hauser is further expanding its portfolio of products, solutions and services in the field of process analytical measurement. The Group has acquired Blue Ocean Nova AG, a manufacturer of innovative inline spectrometers for monitoring quality-relevant process parameters. The company’s 15 employees located in Aalen, Germany will be retained.

Blue Ocean Nova will operate under the umbrella of Endress+Hauser’s center of competence for liquid analysis headquartered in Gerlingen, Germany. “The intelligent process sensors developed by Blue Ocean Nova will enhance our offering in the field of process analytical measurement, adding a strategic building block,” says Dr Manfred Jagiella, Managing Director of Endress+Hauser Conducta GmbH+Co. KG. As a member of the Group’s Executive Board he is also responsible for the analytics business.

The process sensors developed by Blue Ocean Nova cover the relevant optical spectroscopy regions of UV-VIS, NIR and MIR to analyze liquids, gases and solids inline. The innovative technology allows the spectrometer to be directly integrated into the measurement probe, even in explosion-hazardous areas. The sensors can furthermore be automatically cleaned and easily integrated into process control systems.

The systems from Blue Ocean Nova are utilised in the food & beverage, oil & gas, chemicals and life sciences industries for applications such as concentration and moisture measurements and for measuring relevant quality parameters. The technology enhances the Group’s portfolio, which already encompasses Raman spectroscopy, tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) and process photometers.
Blue Ocean Nova was founded by Joachim Mannhardt and Stefan Beck in 2015, bringing extensive product development experience in the field of industrial spectroscopy and process analytical measurements to the company. “Endress+Hauser opens the door to international markets and customers for us,” explains Stefan Beck. Joachim Mannhardt adds: “We’re convinced that our technology will be an ideal enhancement to Endress+Hauser’s optical portfolio.”

Endress+Hauser acquired Blue Ocean Nova effective 31 October 2017. Both parties agreed not to disclose the details of the transaction. Joachim Mannhardt and Stefan Beck will remain on the management team of the innovative company. “With this acquisition, we are continuing to pursue our strategy of strengthening the process analytical measurement portfolio and in the future supporting our customers from the lab to process,” says Manfred Jagiella.