Villa Sistemi boosts Del Global in Europe

Officials at x-ray manufacturer Del Global Technologies believe the company has added an important European dimension to its Valhalla, NY-based business by increasing its ownership in Villa Sistemi Medicali, an Italian radiographic/fluoroscopic firm.

In January, Del Global obtained a 19% stake in Villa along with the nonrevocable option to increase its share to 80%.

In April, Del Global decided to exercise its option.

Villa Sistemi has annual sales of $20 million. Its line of radiographic/fluoroscopic systems and a line of portable imaging systems with power ratings up to 30 kW complements Del Global’s existing line of products, said Leonard Trugman, Del Global’s president.

Getting into the European imaging market has been one of Del Global’s goals over the last five years, Trugman said. Before the Villa Sistemi acquisition, medical sales—systems and subsystems—accounted for 80% of Del Global’s total sales (SCAN 2/2/00). The acquisition drives that to 90%.

Prior to 1990, Del Global manufactured mostly defense electronics.

The company shifted toward medical imaging in the early 1990s, primarily by acquiring companies that specialized in niche technologies Del Global lacked (SCAN 2/2/00).

Del Global purchased x-ray and mammography firm DynaRad in 1992, and in 1996 bought Gendex Medical from Dentsply International. In 1998, Del Global acquired Acoma Medical Imaging for $1.4 million. That year, the company posted the strongest fourth-quarter and fiscal-year results in its history. Year-end sales for 1998 were $62.3 million (SCAN 11/11/98).