Intuitive Buys Schölly Fiberoptic’s Robotic Endoscope Biz

Intuitive, the pioneer and a global leader in robotic-assisted, minimally invasive surgery and manufacturer of da Vinci surgical systems, announced the acquisition of Schölly Fiberoptic’s robotic endoscope business.
 
Intuitive is acquiring the robotic endoscope portion of Schölly Fiberoptic’s business. This acquisition will integrate Schölly’s robotic endoscope manufacturing line, and two Schölly sites into Intuitive operations:  the robotic-related manufacturing line from Denzlingen, Germany; the manufacturing site in Biebertal, Germany; and the repair site in Worcester, Mass., USA. Intuitive will welcome and integrate into its team approximately 200 staff from these three sites over the next 18 months.
 
“Schölly has been an important and valued vendor for Intuitive since the very early days of the company,” said Brian Miller, Intuitive senior vice president for systems and vision.
“Leading visualization has been a core pillar of our company and we expect it to continue to be important going forward,” said Miller. “It makes sense to bring the teams together for both organizations.”
 
Schölly Fiberoptic is a leading player in the field of visualization systems for minimally invasive diagnostic and surgical applications, headquartered in Germany—and one of Intuitive’s strategic suppliers. The companies have worked together for more than 20 years, designing and manufacturing several generations of imaging systems for Intuitive’s da Vinci surgical systems.
 
Schölly Fiberoptic will continue to be a valuable vendor for Intuitive; other businesses in the region should continue to benefit from Intuitive’s expansion.
 
“Application-specific and advanced image quality is our passion and the key for successful and safe minimally invasive surgery,” said Prof. Dr. Holger Reinecke, CEO of Schölly. “We have a long, successful relationship with Intuitive, and we share the common mission to advance health care by providing state-of-the-art technologies and innovative product features. This transaction will allow Schölly to focus more strategically on our global visualization business and ensure sustainable growth.”
 
In addition to bringing important aspects of da Vinci’s visualization system under Intuitive, the acquisition will help strengthen Intuitive’s supply chain, and increase its manufacturing capacity for imaging products.