Fiber Optics

Corning completes acquisition of 3M's Communication Markets Division

June 5, 2018

The acquisition extends Corning Optical Communications' market reach and access to global customers.

Materials science and optical fiber communications company Corning Incorporated (Corning, NY; NYSE: GLW) has completed the previously announced acquisition of substantially all of the Communication Markets Division (CMD) from 3M Company (St. Paul, MN). Corning anticipates closing the sale of the remaining telecommunications system integration services business later in 2018, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.

The acquisition extends Corning Optical Communications’ market reach and access to global customers, particularly in key growth areas in Europe, the Middle East and Asia; the Central and Latin America regions; and the in-building network market segment. The acquisition also expands the optical solutions Corning can provide existing customers through CMD’s high-bandwidth portfolio.

Corning expects the business to generate approximately $400 million in sales, and $0.07 to $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) annually, beginning in 2019. For 2018, Corning expects the acquisition to provide an additional $200 million in sales and anticipates one-time integration costs will result in neutral EPS.

"We are excited to welcome our new colleagues to the Corning family and look forward to the telecommunications system integration services team joining us shortly," said Clark S. Kinlin, executive vice president, Corning Optical Communications. "As we continue to grow our leadership position in optical communications, the combined force of our people, portfolio, and co-innovation engine strengthens our ability to transform the way the world connects. Our customers around the world count on us to provide what they need to get ahead. We are continually expanding our capabilities and innovating to increase deployment speed and network capability, while reducing the customers' total cost of ownership."

Acquiring this business aligns with Corning’s Strategy and Capital Allocation Framework, which includes investing approximately $1 billion to $3 billion in acquisitions. The acquisition is also expected to contribute to the goal of growing Corning Optical Communications' revenue to $5 billion by 2020.

SOURCE: Corning; http://www.corning.com/worldwide/en/about-us/news-events/news-releases/2018/06/corning-closes-acquisition-of-substantially-all-of-3Ms-communication-markets-division.html

About the Author

Gail Overton | Senior Editor (2004-2020)

Gail has more than 30 years of engineering, marketing, product management, and editorial experience in the photonics and optical communications industry. Before joining the staff at Laser Focus World in 2004, she held many product management and product marketing roles in the fiber-optics industry, most notably at Hughes (El Segundo, CA), GTE Labs (Waltham, MA), Corning (Corning, NY), Photon Kinetics (Beaverton, OR), and Newport Corporation (Irvine, CA). During her marketing career, Gail published articles in WDM Solutions and Sensors magazine and traveled internationally to conduct product and sales training. Gail received her BS degree in physics, with an emphasis in optics, from San Diego State University in San Diego, CA in May 1986.