Thomas Engineering Joins IMA Active

IMA has finalized in May the acquisition of the business operated under the trade name Thomas Engineering, a USA leading player in the tablet-coating equipment industry based in Elgin, Illinois.

The transaction includes also the acquisition of the division operated under the trade name Triangle Metals, a specialist in sanitary grade stainless steel fabrications, including laser cutting, forming, welding, and polishing.

Being the first manufacturer to offer a fully perforated, side-vented coating drum in 1969 with its patented Accela-Cota® technology, Thomas Engineering has been designing, developing, manufacturing, selling and distributing high-quality tablet-coating equipment for the pharmaceutical industry for more than 50 years. Thomas Engineering also offers ancillary equipment and systems, along with testing, installation, and qualification services, spare parts and equipment maintenance.

This acquisition agreement, made through a newly incorporated company fully owned by IMA S.p.A, will complement the growing portfolio of innovative and high-tech solutions provided by IMA through IMA Active division in the field of solid dose processing and manufacturing and represents a further step of IMA’s strategy to invest in the US market.

IMA Active will capitalize on the competitive positioning of Thomas Engineering in the tablet-coating sector to continue its investment and development in the pharmaceutical industry. By pursuing this acquisition, IMA Active will be able to enhance the leadership position in coating by reinforcing its presence in the North American market. The result is the newly established Thomas Processing, that aims to become the overseas Center of Excellence for coating under the auspices of IMA.