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Justice Owusu-Hienno on Oregon’s Oldest Tech Company Leaving OR
ESI was recently bought by a Massachusetts based company called MKS Instruments.
ESI, Electro Scientific Industries, is the oldest tech company in Oregon and it was just sold for $1 billion, in cash. In the last few days of October 2018, MKS Instruments, a Massachusetts based company, completed their purchase of ESI, leaving an uncertain future for its employees.
MKS Instruments has yet to announce their plans for ESI but the chief executive of ESI, Michael Burger, believes that it is a great opportunity for the customers and employees alike.
ESI was founded in 1944 and is headquartered in the Beaverton area. It is a leader in the “laser-based manufacturing solutions for the microtechnology industry.” The laser drills created by ESI are in high demand due to its usage for the manufacturing of iPhones and other tech gadgets. With an increase in demand from consumers combined with a need for a more streamlined and cost efficient supply chain, ESI’s laser tools are helping solve these problems and meet demands.
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Not only does ESI use lasers for the components of smartphones and similar gadgets, it also uses laser technology for automotive innovation. As our cars become more and more like smartphones with wheels, ESI becomes more involved the the automotive production processes.
MKS Instruments has been around since 1961 and since then has become a world leader for technology solutions. It has an extensive product list the includes instruments, subsystems and process control solutions. The acquisition of ESI will help expand its already impressive product list, especially its lasers and light source line.
Find out what's happening in Beavertonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The completion of this deal may have come as a shock for some because of ESI’s fluctuating stock prices as well as a statement from Burger in February that said there was no deal in sight for the company. However, ESI’s annual revenue for this year has already been the best in the last 16 years. It is currently at over $365,000 thanks to the demand from tech gadget production.
Since MKS Instruments is a Massachusetts based company, they may want to bring some of ESI components to the East Coast. ESI is no longer one of Oregon’s big tech businesses, leaving the state with only a handful left.