Medline sews up Ecolab’s surgical drape business for $950M

Medline sews up Ecolab’s surgical drape business for $950M

Hospital supply giant Medline is bolstering its presence in the operating room, with a plan to acquire Ecolab’s surgical solutions division at a price just shy of $1 billion.

The deal includes the company’s Microtek lines of sterile drapes for covering patients and OR equipment, as well as Ecolab’s fluid temperature management system. Medline said the purchase will also expand its design and development capabilities in original equipment manufacturing.

“We are pleased to have the opportunity to acquire a leading portfolio of operating room products with such a strong reputation for protecting patients and healthcare workers,” Medline President and Chief Operating Officer Jim Pigott said in a statement. “With our commercial capability and focus on operational excellence, we believe that Medline is best positioned to grow this critical business and provide enhanced services to support our customers.”

Ecolab split its North American healthcare operations into two separate businesses late last year: surgical solutions and infection prevention products. According to the company, the assets trading hands brought in more than $400 million in 2023 sales. Going forward, Ecolab will continue to provide health systems with its infection prevention products, which includes endoscope sterilization services and supplies.

“This transaction builds on the deliberate actions we’ve taken to lay the foundation to transform our global healthcare business into a high-quality Ecolab business,” said the company’s CEO, Christophe Beck, as part of its first-quarter earnings release. “It enables us to both deliver for our shareholders and provide more dedicated service to our important hospital customers, leveraging our leading environmental hygiene, instrument reprocessing offering, and water technologies.”

The $950 million cash deal is slated to close in the latter half of this year.

Ecolab reported total quarterly sales of $3.8 billion earlier this week, including from its industrial water purification and pest elimination businesses. Its healthcare and life sciences segment alone accounted for $382.9 million in revenue, about flat from the same period the year before.

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