Leading international law firm Clifford Chance has advised NSK Ltd. on its acquisition of Brüel & Kjær Vibro (B&K Vibro), the global condition monitoring system (CMS) business, from Spectris Plc. The parties signed the share and asset purchase agreement on 10 December 2020, and completion of the transaction occurred on 1 March 2021. The strategic acquisition of B&K Vibro, which is headquartered in Germany with sister companies in Denmark and the US, will help NSK accelerate innovation and the development of its business in the growing CMS market.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed NSK is today the top supplier of bearings in Japan and is the third largest supplier in the world by market share. It has a portfolio of products and technologies that enhance automotive performance and industrial productivity whilst reducing energy consumption. B&K Vibro is one of the world‘s largest independent suppliers of machinery protection and condition monitoring systems, which are used in the oil & gas, petrochemical and renewable energy industries.

The complex cross-border deal involved a hybrid of share and asset transfers in 10 jurisdictions.  Tokyo partner Natsuko Sugihara led a cross-border team in 12 offices in 10 countries, and local counsel in Denmark and Malaysia. The Clifford Chance team also included partners Jӧrg Rhiel (Frankfurt) and Benjamin Sibbett (New York), counsel Masafumi Shikakura (Tokyo), senior associates Shunsuke Nagae, Timothy Merchant (Tokyo) and Tobias Nogami Kamerling (Düsseldorf), and associates Stephanie Ohira (Tokyo), Matthias Christian Forster (Düsseldorf), Katherine Chang and Christine Kim (New York).

Natsuko said, “It has been our pleasure to advise NSK on this strategic investment, a key objective for its mid-term business plan. I am particularly proud that we could bring together Clifford Chance’s strong global network as one seamless team for our client on this complex, multi-jurisdictional transaction.”