Beneq Acquires EL Business from Planar

On Nov. 30, 2012, Beneq announced the acquisition of the Finnish-based electroluminescence (EL) business from U.S. Planar Systems, Inc., a global leader in digital display technology. The name of the new business unit, Lumineq, stands for Beneq’s strong commitment to thin film electroluminescence (TFEL) technology and the industrial production of other ALD (atomic layer deposition) enabled products. These products will be offered in addition to Beneq’s existing product portfolio.

“The acquisition of this business from Planar is a natural next step in Beneq’s strategy of taking ALD into industrial production, and allows us to expand our own corporate portfolio in world-leading ALD technology and related products,” says Sampo Ahonen, CEO of Beneq Oy. The acquisition also means Beneq has obtained the world’s largest ALD-dedicated production facility, and its coating capacity.

Beneq, which primarily concentrates on thin film equipment manufacturing, will now be able to develop new offerings based on production-scale coating services and other customization services.

“This is an opportunity to build Lumineq into its own niche product brand under the Beneq corporate umbrella, which will bring stronger continuity and growth to the business,” Ahonen said.