Boise temperature sensor company acquired in $75M deal

A Chicago-area publicly-traded company has purchased Boise-based Quality Thermistor Inc. for $75 million.

In a news release, CTS Corp. said its Aug. 1 acquisition of Quality Thermistor Inc., which designs and manufactures temperature sensors for an array of customers, will help bring the Idaho business a higher profile.

“The acquisition of QTI provides a new core temperature sensing technology, expanding our sensing product portfolio and building on our strategy to focus on innovative products that sense, connect and move,” said Kieran O’Sullivan, CEO of CTS Corp., which is headquartered in Lisle, Illinois.

“Additionally, I’m excited to be adding a very talented team while increasing CTS’ presence in the industrial and medical markets and adding new and valuable customer partnerships,” said O’Sullivan of his company, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Previously reported by the Idaho Business Review as “probably one of the most diverse companies you’ve never heard of,” QTI was founded in 1977 and, in addition to its Boise workforce, has a location in Tecate, Mexico.

The Boise facility is located at 2108 Century Way.

The company will continue to operate under the QTI Sensing Solutions brand, said CEO Todd Ketlinski.

“We are delighted and excited to be joining the CTS family at this exciting time,” said Ketlinski, adding that the companies have a “strong alignment” where strategy, core values and beliefs are concerned.

“Furthermore, CTS will help expand our global footprint as we pursue continued growth and product innovation in cutting-edge temperature-sensing applications,” said Ketlinski.

QTI’s sensors are used to measure temperature in gas, liquid or solid mass depending on the application to ensure equipment performance and reliability.

Its temperature sensors have been used by defense contractors and medical device firms. QTI even designed a sensor that allowed the drive motors on the Mars Rover to compensate for the Red Planet’s extreme temperatures.

As part of the deal, QTI will receive an earn out of up to $5 million upon meeting pre-defined performance objectives, the companies said.