News

Bourns Buys Komatsulite and Expands Circuit Protection Offerings

December 04, 2014 by Jeff Shepard

Bourns, Inc. announced today that it has acquired all of the outstanding shares of Komatsulite Mfg. Co., Ltd. and its subsidiaries. Komatsulite, headquartered in Osaka, Japan, is a leader in the field of safety devices for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Komatsulite's innovative mini-breaker devices enable long battery life, high current draw and fast recharge, while providing an effective mechanism to protect against over-temperature conditions. Komatsulite also manufactures specialty connectors and a range of precision-molded components for electronics equipment. With four manufacturing facilities in Japan and one in China, Komatsulite generates in excess of $100 million in annual revenues.

Gordon Bourns, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Bourns, Inc., said, "The acquisition of Komatsulite is a significant milestone in Bourns' long term growth which adds highly complementary products consistent with our strategic roadmap."

According to Dr. Erik Meijer, President of Bourns Electronics, this acquisition provides Bourns with an attractive offering of protectors combining bi-metal switches and thermistors. "New component technology introductions in the safety device arena are rare and we are very excited about adding Komatsulite's mini-breaker products to our broad range of protection technologies," said Dr. Meijer. "With over 30 years of market experience and a variety of innovative internally-developed and acquired products, Bourns is committed to supplying the best and most reliable electronic solutions to satisfy the diverse needs of our customers."

Yoichi Yoshimura, President and CEO of Komatsulite Mfg. Co., Ltd, said, "The combination with Bourns is ideal for Komatsulite's customers which will now benefit not only from our superior precision-molded devices but also from having access to Bourns' extensive global sales and technical support network. Our team is excited about joining Bourns and pursuing new opportunities for the Komatsulite business."