Wastewater instruments manufacturer in Swedish buyout

A Burnley based manufacturer of devices that support the wastewater sector has been bought by a Swedish water firm.

The acquisition of Process Instruments (Pi) in Turf Street, which was established in 1998 and makes instruments for measuring, analysing and controlling water quality, takes WTR Group into an entirely new technology area of the industry it already supports.

Pi, which has subsidiaries in Ireland, France and China, designs and manufactures sensors, analysers and controllers that measure parameters such as chlorine, pH, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, suspended solids and conductivity in real time. Its range includes its own CRONOS and CRIUS instrument controllers and complete application systems.

Mike Riding, managing director of Pi, will continue in his role after the acquisition. He said: "We are proud of what we have built since 1998 and look forward to becoming part of WTR Group. Together we have a strong platform to reach more customers and markets and to keep developing the next generation of instruments."

The acquisition broadens WTR Group's offering from pump, flow and water treatment technology to water quality measurement and control, while also giving Pi gains access to new growth opportunities across the Nordics and northern Europe.

Khashayar Nikavar, chief executive of WTR Group, said: "This is an exciting step for us as we with Pi onboard move into measurement and control, an area that is becoming ever more important as demands for water quality, efficiency and digital monitoring increase.

"Pi brings innovative products, its own development and manufacturing, and a global customer base, and we see great opportunities together with the other companies in the group.

"With Pi on board, we take a major step towards becoming our customers’ first choice for moving, treating, measuring and controlling water, 24/7.”