E Merck To Acquire France's Poly Labo

Merck AG of Switzerland, the holding company for E Merck of Germany, is acquiring the laboratory supply business group Poly Labo International SA of Strasbourg, France, via its French subsidiary Merck-Clevenot SA. The main operating company is Poly Labo Paul Block & Cie in Strasbourg, which was founded in 1953; Delta Bio is a branch in Brussels, Belgium, and Poly Labo Suisse is a joint venture in Geneva. In 1994, the consolidated sales of the group will amount to over 50 million Swiss francs ($37.5 million). The company has a staff of 85 people, 22 of whom work in the field.

This acquisition is a further step by the Merck AG group to consolidate its leading position in the European laboratory supply business, according to the Swiss company. It provides Merck with access to a market growing at an above-average rate for laboratory consumables and small instruments for use in molecular biological and biotechnological research, in which Poly Labo is a market leader.

Two years ago in France, Merck acquired Prolabo SA, a Paris-based laboratory supply business largely active in the industrial and research segments, particularly in chemicals.