INFICON

About

INFICON's story began in 1969 in Syracuse, New York, when a group of scientists and engineers from General Electric (GE) and Syracuse University (SU) developed a groundbreaking halogen leak detector. This innovation laid the foundation for the company's future in gas analysis and measurement. In January 1976, the company, then known as Inficon, was acquired by Leybold-Heraeus GmbH, a prominent vacuum technology firm, leading to the name Inficon Leybold-Heraeus. The journey continued, and in 1987, Leybold-Heraeus GmbH was purchased by Degussa AG, and the company's name evolved to Leybold AG, with the Inficon division becoming Leybold Inficon, Inc. A significant turning point came in 1993 when Oerlikon-Bührle Holding AG, which owned Balzers AG, acquired Leybold AG. This merger in 1994 created Balzers and Leybold Holding AG, the world's largest vacuum and surface technology company at the time. Leybold Inficon, Inc. joined forces with Balzers Instruments of Liechtenstein and two Leybold instrument groups from Germany, forming Balzers and Leybold Instrumentation (BLI). The Oerlikon-Bührle Group was restructured in 1998, with the core business being renamed Unaxis. In a pivotal move in July 2000, Balzers AG and Leybold AG became part of Unaxis, and the instrument group was spun off, establishing INFICON Holding AG in Switzerland. This consolidation brought together Leybold Inficon, Inc. and the two other instrument groups under the INFICON banner. On November 9, 2000, INFICON went public, listing on both the Nasdaq and SIX Swiss Exchange under the ticker symbol "IFCN". While the company delisted from Nasdaq in February 2005, it continues to be traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange. Today, INFICON stands as a leading global provider of innovative instrumentation, critical sensor technologies, and advanced process control software, serving a multitude of industries worldwide.