Nikon has agreed to sell camera robotics specialist MRMC to UK investment firm Blandford Capital, just as the 60-year-old company prepares for NAB 2026.
As Mark Roberts Motion Control (MRMC) continues with its 60th Anniversary celebrations, Nikon has decided to sell the company it initially bought 10 years ago. The statement released about this is terse.
"Since acquiring 100% of MRMC's shares in October 2016, Nikon has been developing business by utilizing MRMC's robotic motion control solution together with Nikon's imaging related technologies and its broad sales channels. This time, Nikon has reconsidered its business portfolio."
No terms were released, but there are clues as to what has happened. The shares are being bought by MRMC Bidco Limited, which looks to be a purpose-built legal entity established by investment company Blandford Capital LLP. Blandford's own description of itself as an investor that works "alongside management teams" on "special situations", plus the obvious Bidco name, suggests that this is a management buy out in one way or another.
We wait for further news, which will likely come at NAB. MRMC has a booth right beside the Nikon one (C5220 in the Central Hall) and is bringing new products to Vegas, but following the change of ownership is now listed as a first-time exhibitor by the show organisation. Given the company's decades long history at the forefront of motion control, that feels a bit ironic.
The announcement came very much out of the blue, but perhaps signifies a shift in Nikon's thinking about the industry. Its 2024 acquisition of RED represents a heavy bet on cinema cameras and acquisition, and camera robotics — which tends to be a high-end, low volume business — look like they simply no longer fit that direction of travel.