Schaumburg, Ill. based Omron Automation & Safety (www.Omron247.com) announced it has made an investment in Ten Media LLC (www.ten-us.com), a technology company that will provide egg producers, supermarkets and consumers with solutions to aid in the prevention of salmonella disease and food borne illnesses associated with the consumption of table eggs. Omron will be the sole provider of automation technology to the Ten Media network, and intends to grow its market in food safety applications through this business opportunity.
Recent U.S. food safety legislation imposes new requirements on U.S. egg producers to strengthen salmonella prevention efforts and comply with certain regimens. Ten Media is currently building what it says is the first nationwide, fully integrated compliance verification and quality assurance network accessible to regulators, egg purchasers and consumers capable of defending substantially all egg production in the U.S.
Ten Media's patented technology certifies each conforming egg by marking a tamperproof "Use By" date and traceability code directly onto its shell. The Ten Media solution enables a virtually transparent supply chain with real time data flow, including on command targeted forward and reverse traceability.
Omron purchased a minority interest in Ten Media at a valuation of $500 million; other investors include Yucaipa Companies LLC, and Domino Printing Sciences plc. Omron Pan-American President and Chief Operating Officer Gregg Holst said, "The opportunity to participate as an investor in Ten Media is extremely exciting for our company. The delivery of food safety solutions to the U.S. egg industry and consumers closely aligns with Omron’s core corporate ethos of working for the benefit of society."
Omron will provide manufacturing and procurement services, automation hardware and engineering support for Ten Media. Holst said Omron expects income from the investment “will be earnings enhancing starting in FY2012, with the potential for significant additional value from the equity shareholding in the medium term.” Ten Media's newest product line will commence deployment with Omron components during 2012.
Mitchell Chait president of Ten Media said, "Omron is a veteran technology innovator with more than 75 years of operating history and successes. Their expertise spans automation, security, industrial safety, healthcare and sensing. By securing Omron as a partner, we’ve fortified our bench and automation capabilities. We welcome them aboard."
Nigel Bond managing director of Domino Printing Sciences plc commented, "It is exciting to have a company of the caliber and global reach of Omron providing industrial control expertise."
Omron Automation & Safety is a unit of Omron Corporation, a multi-billion-dollar, diversified company with business units producing industrial automation products, electronic components, and more with headquarters in Kyoto, Japan.
