Published October 2002

Fluke Corp. acquires California maker
of infrared thermometers

By Eric Fetters
Herald Business Writer

Fluke Corp. has bought Raytek Corp., a California-based maker of infrared thermometers, for approximately $75 million.

Fluke's parent company, Danaher Corp., signed a definitive agreement to purchase Raytek in mid-August and announced the acquisition in early September.

The deal should not change much for either Raytek or Fluke, said Larry Wilson, spokesman at Fluke's headquarters in Everett.

"They'll continue to operate as a separate entity with their own name," Wilson said.

While Raytek's president will report directly to the president at Fluke, the company will keep its main offices in Santa Cruz, Calif. No layoffs at Raytek, which employs about 300, are expected as a result of the deal, Wilson added.

Started in 1963, Raytek designs, makes and services portable infrared thermometers, fixed-mount thermometers, line scanners and sensors for industrial and mechanical uses. Last year, the company's revenues exceeded $50 million.

Infrared thermometers have the advantage of being able to measure high temperatures of moving, hazardous or inaccessible objects, such as high-voltage parts.

Fluke has sold products made by Raytek for several years, and the two companies' businesses complement each other well, said Cliff Warren, president of Raytek.

"Many of our people know their people, we've been up there to see them before, and they've been down here," Warren said. "This is the realization of a long-term relationship."

Fluke's main products are hand-held test tools used by engineers and technicians. Founded by John Fluke Sr. in 1948, the company remains one of Snohomish County's largest employers, with 2,400 employees around the world.

Since Fluke was purchased in 1998 by Danaher, a holding company in Washington, D.C., it has acquired several other makers of measurement instruments. Most recently, Fluke bought Reliable Power Meters, a California company that makes a range of products for the electrical industry, in April. The same month, Fluke bought three biomedical instrument companies, which now operate under the name of Fluke Biomedical.

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