Malvern Instruments
Encyclopedia
Malvern Instruments is a Spectris
plc company.
Founded in the late 1960s, the company is a manufacturer and supplier of laboratory analytical instruments,
was influential in the development of the Malvern Correlator
and remains notable for its work in the advancement of particle sizing technology.
According to Malvern Instruments’ own website,
it produces technology for materials analysis; principally instruments designed to measure the size, shape and charge of particles. Additional areas of development now include equipment for
rheology
measurements,
chemical imaging
and chromatography
.
These systems have applications across many industries including: pharmaceuticals; life sciences
; metallurgy
; mining; semiconductors
; polymer
and protein
science and, even food production.
2008: acquisition of Viscotek Corp, manufacturer of chromatographic and laboratory equipment and supplies
2006: acquisition of Spectral Dimensions Inc, a manufacturer of infrared chemical imaging instruments
2003: acquisition of Bohlin Instruments Ltd, a Gloucestershire-based manufacturer of rheology and viscosity instruments
2001: holding company changes its name to Spectris plc
1997: acquisition of Insitec Inc from Burnfield PLC
1997: acquired by the Fairey Aviation Company
1996: acquisition of A3 GmbH, Stuttgart based specialist in the design, manufacture and marketing of air and liquid particle counters
1992: Burnfield acquired Malvern Instruments from Cray Electronics Holdings
1992: landmark contribution to the development of laser techniques for particle characterisation
1971: incorporated as ‘Malvern Instruments Ltd.’
, jointly with the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment
(RSRE), for developing the Malvern Correlator.
More recently, the 2010 list of winners of the annual Queen's Awards for Enterprise
includes Malvern Instruments, in celebration of an instrument that measures particles in fluids.
2010: Queen’s Award for Innovation
2006: Queen’s Award for International Trade
1988: Queen’s Award for Export & Technology
1981: Queen’s Award for Export Achievement
1977: Queen’s Award for Technological Achievement
1977: MacRobert Award
for Outstanding Technical Innovation
Spectris
Spectris plc is a leading supplier of precision instrumentation and controls. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.-History:...
plc company.
Founded in the late 1960s, the company is a manufacturer and supplier of laboratory analytical instruments,
was influential in the development of the Malvern Correlator
and remains notable for its work in the advancement of particle sizing technology.
According to Malvern Instruments’ own website,
it produces technology for materials analysis; principally instruments designed to measure the size, shape and charge of particles. Additional areas of development now include equipment for
rheology
Rheology
Rheology is the study of the flow of matter, primarily in the liquid state, but also as 'soft solids' or solids under conditions in which they respond with plastic flow rather than deforming elastically in response to an applied force....
measurements,
chemical imaging
Chemical imaging
Chemical imaging is the analytical capability to create a visual image of components distribution from simultaneous measurement of spectra and spatial, time informations....
and chromatography
Chromatography
Chromatography is the collective term for a set of laboratory techniques for the separation of mixtures....
.
Operations
As part of the Materials Analysis sector, Malvern Instruments derives most of its revenue through sales of a range of particle and material characterisation instruments.These systems have applications across many industries including: pharmaceuticals; life sciences
Life sciences
The life sciences comprise the fields of science that involve the scientific study of living organisms, like plants, animals, and human beings. While biology remains the centerpiece of the life sciences, technological advances in molecular biology and biotechnology have led to a burgeoning of...
; metallurgy
Metallurgy
Metallurgy is a domain of materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are called alloys. It is also the technology of metals: the way in which science is applied to their practical use...
; mining; semiconductors
Semiconductor industry
The semiconductor industry is the aggregate collection of companies engaged in the design and fabrication of semiconductor devices. It formed around 1960, once the fabrication of semiconductors became a viable business...
; polymer
Polymer science
Polymer science or macromolecular science is the subfield of materials science concerned with polymers, primarily synthetic polymers such as plastics...
and protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
science and, even food production.
Products
- Spraytec droplet size system
- Mastersizer laser diffraction systems
- Zetasizer particle sizeParticle size (general)Particle size is a notion introduced for comparings dimensions of solid particles , liquid particles , or gaseous particles .The notion of particle size applies to*Colloidal particles;*Particles in ecology;...
systems - Morphologi G3 particle characterisationCharacterization (materials science)Characterization, when used in materials science, refers to the use of external techniques to probe into the internal structure and properties of a material...
system - Sysmex FPIA-3000 particle characterisation system
- Near Infrared Chemical Imaging (NIR-CI) systems
- RheometryRheometryRheometry generically refers to the experimental techniques used to determine the rheological properties of materials, that is the quantitative and qualitative relationships between deformations and stresses and their derivatives.The choice of the adequate experimental technique depends on the...
systems - Viscotek chromatographyChromatographyChromatography is the collective term for a set of laboratory techniques for the separation of mixtures....
systems
Organizational development
2010: acquisition of Reologica Instruments AB, a Lund-based manufacturer of rheology and viscometry instrumentation2008: acquisition of Viscotek Corp, manufacturer of chromatographic and laboratory equipment and supplies
2006: acquisition of Spectral Dimensions Inc, a manufacturer of infrared chemical imaging instruments
2003: acquisition of Bohlin Instruments Ltd, a Gloucestershire-based manufacturer of rheology and viscosity instruments
2001: holding company changes its name to Spectris plc
1997: acquisition of Insitec Inc from Burnfield PLC
1997: acquired by the Fairey Aviation Company
1996: acquisition of A3 GmbH, Stuttgart based specialist in the design, manufacture and marketing of air and liquid particle counters
1992: Burnfield acquired Malvern Instruments from Cray Electronics Holdings
1992: landmark contribution to the development of laser techniques for particle characterisation
1971: incorporated as ‘Malvern Instruments Ltd.’
Innovations and awards
In 1977, Malvern Instruments was recognised by the Royal Academy of EngineeringRoyal Academy of Engineering
-Overview: is the UK’s national academy of engineering. The Academy brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across the engineering sectors for a shared purpose: to advance and promote excellence in engineering....
, jointly with the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment
Royal Signals and Radar Establishment
The Royal Signals and Radar Establishment was a scientific research establishment within the Ministry of Defence of the United Kingdom, located primarily at Malvern in Worcestershire. It was formed in 1976 in an amalgamation of earlier research establishments including the Royal Radar Establishment...
(RSRE), for developing the Malvern Correlator.
More recently, the 2010 list of winners of the annual Queen's Awards for Enterprise
Queen's Awards for Enterprise
The Queen's Awards for Enterprise is an awards programme for British businesses and other organizations who excel at international trade, innovation or sustainable development. They are the highest official UK awards for British businesses...
includes Malvern Instruments, in celebration of an instrument that measures particles in fluids.
2010: Queen’s Award for Innovation
2006: Queen’s Award for International Trade
1988: Queen’s Award for Export & Technology
1981: Queen’s Award for Export Achievement
1977: Queen’s Award for Technological Achievement
1977: MacRobert Award
MacRobert Award
The MacRobert Award has been presented every year since 1969 by the Royal Academy of Engineering.The award seeks to recognise innovative ideas in engineering.-History:The award is named in honour of Lady Rachel Workman MacRobert .-Winners:...
for Outstanding Technical Innovation