Varian, Inc. was one of the largest manufacturers of
scientific instrument
A scientific instrument is a device or tool used for scientific purposes, including the study of both natural phenomena and theoretical research.
History
Historically, the definition of a scientific instrument has varied, based on usage, laws, an ...
s for the scientific industry. They had offerings over a broad range of chemical analysis equipment, with a particular focus on Information Rich Detection and Vacuum technology. Varian was spun off from
Varian Associates in 1999 and was purchased by
Agilent Technologies in May 2010 for $1.5 billion, or $52 per share.
Varian Inc. had its corporate headquarters in
Palo Alto,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, and offices in Australia, the
Benelux
The Benelux Union ( nl, Benelux Unie; french: Union Benelux; lb, Benelux-Unioun), also known as simply Benelux, is a politico-economic union and formal international intergovernmental cooperation of three neighboring states in western Europe: B ...
countries, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Korea, Russia, Sweden, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Manufacturing plants
Varian Inc. contained the following manufacturing plants:
* Lake Forest, California USA
* Palo Alto, California USA
* Walnut Creek, California USA
*
Lexington, Massachusetts, USA
* Cary, North Carolina, USA
* Mulgrave, Victoria Australia (the largest Varian Inc manufacturing and R&D plant)
* Middelburg, Netherlands
* Grenoble, France
* Yarnton, United Kingdom
*
Church Stretton
Church Stretton is a market town in Shropshire, England, south of Shrewsbury and north of Ludlow. The population in 2011 was 4,671. , Shropshire, United Kingdom (polymer laboratories)
* Turin, Italy
Products and services

*
Chromatography, including
gas chromatography
Gas chromatography (GC) is a common type of chromatography used in analytical chemistry for separating and analyzing compounds that can be vaporized without decomposition. Typical uses of GC include testing the purity of a particular substance, ...
,
GC/MS,
high performance liquid chromatography
High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), formerly referred to as high-pressure liquid chromatography, is a technique in analytical chemistry used to separate, identify, and quantify each component in a mixture. It relies on pumps to pa ...
, and
LC/MS.
*
Spectroscopy
Spectroscopy is the field of study that measures and interprets the electromagnetic spectra that result from the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and matter as a function of the wavelength or frequency of the radiation. Matter wa ...
, including
UV-Vis,
CD,
near infrared, and
FT-IR
*
Inductively coupled plasma, including
mass spectroscopic and
atomic emission spectroscopic detection.
*
mass spectrometry
Mass spectrometry (MS) is an analytical technique that is used to measure the mass-to-charge ratio of ions. The results are presented as a ''mass spectrum'', a plot of intensity as a function of the mass-to-charge ratio. Mass spectrometry is use ...
, including
FTMS
Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry is a type of mass analyzer (or mass spectrometer) for determining the mass-to-charge ratio (''m''/''z'') of ions based on the ion cyclotron resonance, cyclotron frequency of the ions in a ...
*
Nuclear magnetic resonance
*
Linear accelerator
*
Magnetic resonance imaging
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio wave ...
*
X-ray Crystallography
X-ray crystallography is the experimental science determining the atomic and molecular structure of a crystal, in which the crystalline structure causes a beam of incident X-rays to diffract into many specific directions. By measuring the angles ...
* Information rich detection
* Drugs of Abuse Testing
* Dissolution Testing
* Vacuum Pumps
* Leak Detection
* Turbo Pumping Systems
* Vacuum Measurement
* Valves and components
History
In October 1967, Techtron Pty Ltd merged with
Varian Associates. Techtron is a manufacturer of Atomic Absorption Spectrometers and Spectral lamps.
In 1982 Varian transferred the Cary UV-Visible product line to Australia.
In 1997 Varian bought Chemagnetics, a Colorado-based manufacturer of solid-state NMR spectrometers.
In 2002 Varian bought Ansys Technologies, Inc., a California-based manufacturer of In-Vitro Medical Devices.
In 2004 Varian Inc bought
Magnex Scientific
The Magnex Scientific was a company involved in the design and building of superconducting magnet systems. In 2004 Magnex was bought by Varian, Inc.
The Magnet Technology Centre is the new headquarters for magnet manufacturing for Varian, Inc a ...
, an
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
-based manufacturer of high-field magnets.
In 2005 Varian bought Polymer Laboratories, a speciality
polymer
A polymer (; Greek '' poly-'', "many" + ''-mer'', "part")
is a substance or material consisting of very large molecules called macromolecules, composed of many repeating subunits. Due to their broad spectrum of properties, both synthetic a ...
analysis and manufacturing company.
In 2006 Varian bought Ion Spec, an FTMS (
Fourier Transform Mass Spectrometry) manufacturing company.
In 2007, Varian, Inc. bought Analogix, Inc., a company specializing in
flash chromatography
Column chromatography in chemistry is a chromatography method used to isolate a single chemical compound from a mixture. Chromatography is able to separate substances based on differential adsorption of compounds to the adsorbent; compounds move th ...
.
In 2008, Varian bought
Oxford Diffraction, a British company specializing in X-ray diffraction equipment.
On 27 July 2009
Agilent Technologies announced it would buy Varian Inc, for $1.5 Billion.
On 14 October 2014 Agilent made the strategic decision to close its NMR business. Agilent entered the NMR business in 2010, with the acquisition of Varian.
See also
*
Laboratory equipment
A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratory services are provided in a variety of settings: physicia ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
Varian, Inc.Magnex Scientific
Companies based in Palo Alto, California
Instrument-making corporations
2009 mergers and acquisitions