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Oxford Instruments
United Kingdom manufacturing and research company

Oxford Instruments plc is a United Kingdom manufacturing and research company that designs and manufactures tools and systems for industry and research. The company is headquartered in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, England, with sites in the United Kingdom, United States, Europe, and Asia. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.

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History

The company was founded by Sir Martin Wood in 1959, with help from his wife Audrey Wood (Lady Wood)34 to manufacture superconducting magnets for use in scientific research, starting in his garden shed in Northmoor Road, Oxford, England.5 It was the first substantial commercial spin-out company from the University of Oxford6 and was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1983.7

It had a pioneering role in the development of magnetic resonance imaging, providing the first superconducting magnets for this application. The first commercial MRI whole body scanner was manufactured at its Osney Mead factory in Oxford in 1980 for installation at Hammersmith Hospital, London.8 Further innovations included the development of active shielding, whereby fringe fields hazardous to pacemaker wearers, causing difficulty and expense in siting, were virtually eliminated.9 Oxford Instruments was not able to capitalise on these inventions itself, granting royalty-free license to Philips and General Electric whilst developing a joint venture with Siemens in 1989: Oxford Instruments sold its 49% shareholding to Siemens in 2003.10

Acquisitions and divestitures

Divestitures

  • 2003 Oxford Magnet Technology Ltd, minority shareholding sold to Siemens plc11
  • 2016 Superconducting Wire business sold to Bruker.12

Acquisitions

  • 2003 Thermo VC Semicon Ltd. Molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) equipment for semiconductor fabrication13
  • 2005 HKL Technology A/S. EBSD detector technology for electron microscopy14
  • 2008 Link Analytical AB. Sales channel for Oxford Instruments in Scandinavia15
  • 2014 Andor Technology plc. Scientific cameras, spectrometers and high speed fluorescence microscopes16

References

  1. "Offices – Oxford Instruments". oxinst.com. Archived from the original on 23 May 2022. Retrieved 26 May 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20220523094953/https://www.oxinst.com/offices ↩

  2. "OXFORD INSTRMNT share price (OXIG) – London Stock Exchange". londonstockexchange.com. Archived from the original on 20 July 2018. Retrieved 26 May 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20180720022507/https://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/prices-and-markets/stocks/summary/company-summary/GB0006650450GBGBXSSMM.html ↩

  3. "Audrey, Lady Wood (Oxford Instruments, The Oxford Trust, Oxford Innovation)" (PDF). sbs.oxford.edu. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 July 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170731130842/https://www.sbs.oxford.edu/sites/default/files/Entrepreneurship_Centre/Docs/audrey-wood.pdf ↩

  4. Audrey Wood, Magnetic Venture: The Story of Oxford Instruments (Oxford University Press, 2001). ISBN 0-19-924108-2 /wiki/Oxford_University_Press ↩

  5. "Sir Martin Wood and Oxford Instruments" (PDF). Oxford University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 April 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20120404033634/http://www.sbs.ox.ac.uk/centres/entrepreneurship/Documents/Martin_Wood.pdf ↩

  6. "High-tech UK industry; Oxford Instruments". CASE. 4 July 2011. Archived from the original on 19 July 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20180719233335/http://www.sciencecampaign.org.uk/?p=5673 ↩

  7. "Sir Martin Wood and Oxford Instruments" (PDF). Oxford University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 April 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20120404033634/http://www.sbs.ox.ac.uk/centres/entrepreneurship/Documents/Martin_Wood.pdf ↩

  8. "MRI Scanner (1980)". Oxfordshire Blue Plaques Scheme. Oxfordshire Blue Plaques Board. 2 June 2011. Retrieved 6 January 2012. http://oxonblueplaques.org.uk/plaques/mri.html ↩

  9. "Superconducting magnets: The heart of NMR". Ingenia. February 2004. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20120319155436/http://www.ingenia.org.uk/ingenia/articles.aspx?Index=239 ↩

  10. "Siemens Acquires Oxford Instruments' Stake in Oxford Magnet Technology". PR Newswire. 2004. Retrieved 17 September 2011. http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/cgi/news/release?id=111668 ↩

  11. "Oxford Instruments plc sells its stake in Oxford Magnet Technology Limited to Siemens plc". www.chemeurope.com. https://www.chemeurope.com/en/news/31184/oxford-instruments-plc-sells-its-stake-in-oxford-magnet-technology-limited-to-siemens-plc.html ↩

  12. "Bruker and Oxford Instruments Announce Acquisition of Oxford Instruments Superconducting Wire Business by Bruker's BEST Segment". ir.bruker.com. https://ir.bruker.com/press-releases/press-release-details/2016/Bruker-and-Oxford-Instruments-Announce-Acquisition-of-Oxford-Instruments-Superconducting-Wire-Business-by-Brukers-BEST-Segment/default.aspx ↩

  13. "Oxford Instruments acquires Thermo VG Semicon". Laser Focus World. 7 October 2003. https://www.laserfocusworld.com/test-measurement/research/article/16560506/oxford-instruments-acquires-thermo-vg-semicon ↩

  14. "Oxford Instruments acquires HKL Technology A/S". www.chemeurope.com. https://www.chemeurope.com/en/news/44945/oxford-instruments-acquires-hkl-technology-a-s.html ↩

  15. "Oxford Instruments acquires Link Analytical". www.chemeurope.com. https://www.chemeurope.com/en/news/82799/oxford-instruments-acquires-link-analytical.html ↩

  16. "Andor Technology". Qubis. https://www.qubis.co.uk/about-us/success-stories/andor-technology ↩