IPG adds ophthalmology with €300M Lumibird Medical deal

Fiber laser company IPG Photonics has agreed to acquire the medical laser division of French photonics firm Lumibird, adding particular expertise in ophthalmology applications to IPG’s existing life sciences portfolio.

The €300 million cash deal, which includes an additional performance-based earnout of up to €50 million and should be completed by the end of year, will complement IPG’s current offerings including state-of-the-art thulium lasers for urology applications, and in dermatology.

Leadership position

According to IPG the acquisition adds roughly a billion-dollar addressable market to its existing portfolio, with Lumibird Medical reckoned to have posted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of €24.1 million on sales of €112.2 million in 2025. That figure represents nearly half of the total sales reported by Paris-listed Lumibird last year.

IPG’s CEO Mark Gitin said: “We expect that this acquisition will accelerate our strategic expansion in attractive medical markets in Advanced Solutions.

“Lumibird Medical’s leadership in ophthalmology complements our strength in urology, which will create a scaled medical platform with opportunities to accelerate innovation, broaden our commercial reach and deliver differentiated solutions for physicians and patients.”

Lumibird was created from the 2017 merger of Quantel and Keopsys, and the medical division’s subsidiary includes the likes of Quantel Medical, Ellex, and Optotek Medical. Product lines include ultrasound imaging for diagnostics, alongside lasers used to treat conditions such as detached retinas, cataracts, and glaucoma.

Discussing the pending deal with investors, Gitin added: “Expanding our participation in medical has been a high-priority growth initiative because it builds directly on the capabilities that already differentiate IPG, including our lasers, photonics and applications expertise.

“We’ve established a strong position in urology and developed solutions for dermatology markets through innovation, new product development, and customer wins. Lumibird Medical now expands on that foundation by adding a leadership position in ophthalmology and creating a broader medical platform spanning the three leading medical laser specialties: ophthalmology, urology, and dermatology.”

Installed base

Adding the Lumibird business should increase sales attributable to IPG’s “Advanced Solutions” division to just over a quarter of the company’s revenues, up from around 16 per cent currently. For 2025 IPG posted total sales of just over one billion dollars, as the firm’s key application areas in industrial materials processing showed signs of a long-awaited recovery.

“Lumibird Medical is a global leader in developing, manufacturing, and marketing innovative diagnostic and treatment solutions primarily for ophthalmology,” Gitin told investors. “Their strong brand recognition and broad product portfolio have resulted in an impressive installed base of more than 80,000 systems globally.”

The CEO also said that the France-headquartered business, which has key production locations in Australia and Slovenia, currently employs more than 450 people, including 50 engaged in research and development.

“They are well positioned across markets with laser treatment and diagnosis solutions for retinal conditions, cataracts, and glaucoma,” Gitin noted. “In addition, the company is leveraging its technical expertise to develop diagnostic and treatment solutions for dry eye, which is a developing growth market.”

The acquisition should also help IPG to better navigate Europe’s regulatory, clinical, and compliance regimes, complementing the fiber laser firm’s experience in the US and something that is expected to help accelerate future approval processes - always a key consideration in medical laser applications.

Scale and maturity

For Lumibird, the proposed transaction would mark the beginning of a new chapter as a much more focused photonics company, giving its balance sheet a significant boost as it looks to build on strategic market sectors including space, defense, industrial, sensing, and scientific applications.

Its CEO Marc Le Flohic described the development as “undoubtedly one of the most significant milestones in Lumibird's history”, praising the medical division and its employees for achieving excellent operational performance with differentiated laser technologies.

“Their energy, passion, creativity, and entrepreneurial mindset have transformed this division into an internationally recognised success story,” he said. “I am convinced that our medical division [will] find within IPG Photonics an outstanding platform to continue innovating, expanding internationally, and creating value for patients, physicians and customers around the world.”

Le Flohic believes that the slimmed-down Lumibird will be more agile, with the financial resources to invest in breakthrough technologies seen as becoming increasingly strategic for Europe.

“This is not the story of a company selling one of its businesses,” he added. “It is the story of two successful businesses that have reached the scale and maturity to pursue their own ambitions with the focus and resources each deserves.

“As an entrepreneur, I cannot imagine a more rewarding outcome than seeing both businesses enter this new chapter from a position of strength. I firmly believe this is the best path to create sustainable value for our employees, customers, partners and shareholders alike.”