Hill-Rom completes $400 million purchase of Aspen Surgical Products

Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:  HRC), a global leader in healthcare technologies, today announced it has completed the $400 million purchase of privately held Aspen Surgical Products.  Aspen Surgical, based in Michigan, provides a portfolio of well-established surgical consumable and specialty medical products focused on improving the safety of patients and health care professionals.  The product lines include market leading Bard-Parker^® conventional and safety scalpels and blades, Colby fluid collection products, Richard-Allan™ specialty needles, a variety of other operating room disposables and instrument care products as well as wound care dressings.  The acquisition of Aspen Surgical further develops Hill-Rom's surgical business, adding a portfolio of consumable products and expanding its position in North American and European surgical markets. The transaction is expected to be accretive approximately $0.02 to fiscal year 2012 earnings per share, excluding non-recurring purchase accounting items and other acquisition and integration related costs.

"With the addition of Aspen Surgical, Hill-Rom is well positioned for growth and geographic expansion in our surgical business, particularly in the safety product segments," said John J. Greisch, President and CEO of Hill-Rom. "This acquisition further expands our global portfolio beyond our core franchise with a business that is immediately accretive to earnings per share and adds recurring revenue to our existing surgical platform."

Aspen Surgical has annual revenue of approximately $120 million.  The transaction was funded with a combination of cash and bank debt. 

"Aspen Surgical and Hill-Rom share a similar mission to enhance outcomes with products that help ensure a safe environment in surgical and other health care settings," said Greg Pritchard, formerly CEO of Aspen Surgical and now Senior Vice President and President, Surgical and Respiratory Care at Hill-Rom. "We look forward to leveraging the valued Hill-Rom brand to expand Aspen Surgical's presence around the world."