The Private Equity fund of Gilde Healthcare, a European specialist healthcare investor with offices in Utrecht (the Netherlands) and Frankfurt (Germany), has acquired a majority stake in Chr. Diener, a leading international contract manufacturer of customer-specific precision surgical instruments.

Founded in 1900, Chr. Diener builds on a long heritage of surgical instrument making. Today, the company has a market leading reputation for designing and manufacturing customer-specific instruments for several international Original Equipment Manufacturers in orthopaedic- and spinal surgery. Through their state-of-the-art production technologies and comprehensive quality assurance system, Chr. Diener produces highly complex instruments complying to the most stringent quality standards. Located in Tuttlingen (Germany), the centre of surgical instrument production, the company employs 90 highly skilled workers.

Gilde Healthcare will actively support the existing management of Chr. Diener to further build out its leading position in highly complex surgical instruments by investing in new capacity and services. With the support of Gilde Healthcare, the company plans to accelerate growth with both existing and new clients. Moreover, Gilde Healthcare sees a clear opportunity to build a market leading instrument manufacturing group, whereby Chr. Diener will serve as the first member of a larger group.

Carolin and Michael Baur, Managing Directors of Chr. Diener stated: “We are proud of our long history and of the strong position our company has today. In the current dynamic market, we see several opportunities to further expand Chr. Diener’s position and are excited to partner with Gilde Healthcare in this journey. With their many years of experience and international know-how in the healthcare and medical technology markets, we see Gilde as a great partner for the future. We look forward to working with the Gilde team and to further build on our long heritage together.”

Rafael Natanek, Partner at the Private Equity fund of Gilde Healthcare, commented: “We are pleased by the trust placed in us by Carolin and Michael, and look forward to working with them in the future. Together, we see ample opportunities to further build out Chr. Diener’s strong market position. With ongoing consolidation in the instrument market, we also see an opportunity to do further acquisitions and build a larger instrument manufacturing group.

With our investment in Chr. Diener, we have completed our fifth private equity investment in Germany, four of which closed in the past 18 months. This underpins the strength of our European healthcare network, our local presence in Germany and our ability to partner successfully with founders and families to help them further accelerate growth.”

About Chr. Diener
The name Chr. Diener has been synonymous with excellence in the manufacture of surgical instruments since 1900. As an internationally active, family-owned company, we excel in contract manufacturing customer-specific surgical instruments and bespoke solutions crafted to meet individual customer needs. When it comes to orthopaedic and spinal surgery, we have established a sound reputation as a producer of highly complex instruments complying to the most stringent quality standards. Headquartered in Tuttlingen (Germany), with 90 employees, the company caters to clients globally.

About Gilde Healthcare
Gilde Healthcare is a specialized healthcare investor managing over €1.9 billion ($2.0 billion) across two fund strategies: Private Equity and Venture&Growth. The firm is headquartered in Utrecht (The Netherlands) with local offices in Frankfurt (Germany) and Cambridge (United States). The Private Equity fund of Gilde Healthcare participates in profitable lower mid-market healthcare companies based in North-Western Europe. The Private Equity fund targets healthcare providers, suppliers of medical products and service providers to pharma, medtech and healthcare. Gilde Healthcare’s Venture&Growth fund invests in therapeutics, medtech and healthtech in Europe and North America. Further information at www.gildehealthcare.com

Media contacts Gilde Healthcare: Rafael Natanek (natanek@gildehealthcare.com)