Trimble to Sell its ThingMagic RFID Business to Novanta

Trimble (NASDAQ: TRMB) announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its Woburn, Mass. -based ThingMagic RFID business to Novanta Inc. (NASDAQ: NOVT) for $20 million in cash. Novanta is a global leader and supplier of photonics, precision motion and vision technologies to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the medical and advanced industrial markets. The transaction, subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017. 

ThingMagic's RFID operations and product portfolio will be combined with Novanta's JADAK business. JADAK is a market-leading provider of embedded data collection and printing solutions for medical OEMs serving the healthcare and life science markets.

"This transaction is consistent with our strategy to focus our efforts on domain-specific connected solutions in our core markets," said Michael Lesyna, vice president of Trimble. "We believe that we can create more value and sustainable differentiation by focusing on the software, data and sensor integration for solutions that leverage RFID versus owning and developing the technology."

The ThingMagic Division has been reported as part of Trimble's Advanced Devices segment. The divestiture will not have a material impact on either overall or segment financial results.

Partnering for RFID Technology

In addition, Novanta and JADAK will become the preferred provider of RFID technology for use in Trimble's solutions across a variety of vertical markets including construction, mobile computing, rail and others.

"Working together, Novanta and JADAK can deliver industry-leading RFID technology that will allow Trimble to focus on its core software and information technology that integrates positioning capabilities," said Lesyna. "The end goal is to deliver a complete solution to transform work processes and efficiency for our customers."

"By combining the resources and RFID-based technologies of JADAK and ThingMagic, Novanta will be uniquely positioned to be a leading provider of high-performing RFID solutions for mission critical applications to OEMs within the healthcare industry," said Matthijs Glastra, chief executive officer of Novanta Inc. "ThingMagic broadens our portfolio of solutions in a high-growth technology area, while giving us the resources to address the growing need for improvements in workflow solutions, patient safety, anti-counterfeiting, and asset tracking in a medical environment. In addition, we are extremely excited to support Trimble by providing RFID technology for its solutions."

Source: Trimble