Surrey-based Spectris (www.spectris.com), which makes analytical instruments, has spent £15.4 million acquiring the software and assets of Capstone Technology Corporation in the USA and Canada.

The latter has offices in Seattle and Vancouver; it develops software for process-control optimisation that is used by customers in many industries, including pulp and paper, chemicals, utilities, oil and gas, and food and beverage.

Jo Hallas, business group director at Spectris, said: “Capstone extends our portfolio to include enhanced process-control and decision-support solutions.

“This is in line with our strategy to grow by using our knowledge to provide solutions that use innovative combinations of instrumentation, software and services to enhance productivity and create greater value for our customers.”