DECEMBER 16, 2009--Basler (Ahrensburg, Germany; www.baslerweb.com) has sold the intellectual property and all assets associated with its Optical Media business as of Dec. 7, 2009 to Xiris Automation of Ontario, Canada.
Effective immediately, Xiris will assume all aspects of sales, marketing, R&D, production, and service of the Basler "R" Ident Code Reader and "L" Print Inspection product lines as well as the sales of service and spare parts of the "S" Scanner product line.
This transaction is congruent with Basler's previously communicated plan to follow a strategic path focusing on larger, growing markets. The Optical Media business originated more than 20 years ago and the largest business segment for Basler for many years. However, due to the global saturation of CD and DVD manufacturing along with the smaller and slower penetration of Blu-Ray format discs, capital investments in the optical disc industry have been decreasing. As a result, Basler revenue has been decreasing in the optical media sector to a relatively insignificant level in recent years while still requiring a disproportionate amount of attention and complexity.
Discarding this business allows the company to reduce complexity and focus on the business with cameras for industrial and security use and with surface inspection systems for the LCD- and the solar industry.
Xiris Automation develops "machines that can see" quality defects in manufactured goods. The camera-based systems include optics, electronics, and software for quality control inspection, product recognition, and traceability. Xiris develops state-of-the-art technology for integration into machine-vision systems, which are designed, built, and serviced for a global client base from facilities in Canada, Germany, India, and Taiwan.
-- Posted by Vision Systems Design, www.vision-systems.com
