Laird Technologies Inc of Earth City, MO, USA, which designs and supplies customized performance-critical components and systems for electronics and wireless products, has acquired Nextreme Thermal Solutions of Durham, NC, USA, which designs and manufactures microscale thin-film thermal management and power generation modules and sub-systems.
Laird reckons that Nextreme’s thermoelectric technology, which delivers high-precision cooling in an ultra-small form factor, will advance its thermal management business (particularly beneficial as devices become smaller and more compact).
Nextreme and Laird currently have a strategic design and distribution partnership, but the acquisition aims to enable wider market access to serve current and potential new customers in application areas such as sensors, solar power and LEDs. In addition, Laird provides the ability to rapidly scale-up Nextreme’s operations in order to exploit the full potential of these products.
“Nextreme is the next generation in technology for thermoelectric. It can fundamentally change the way we cool electronics at the most integrated levels while being produced in large volumes,” reckons chief executive David Lockwood. “This significant shift in technology will also enable new applications such as energy harvesting,” he adds.
“Nextreme is an excellent fit with our business growth strategy,” Lockwood reckons. “Through this acquisition we will combine the most innovative technology with our market presence and ability to scale operations, to deliver added value to our customers and enable us to move into new segments.”
