Fürst Medisinsk Laboratorium has 400 employees and specialises in medical biochemistry, clinical pharmacology, microbiology and pathology. The company analyses samples from over 12,000 patients a day, making it the largest medical laboratory in the Nordic region.
The company was founded by Valentin and Astri Fürst in 1950.
“My father joined Fürst in the mid-1970s and eventually became a co-owner. The company has been 100% owned by my family since 1995”, comments Asle Helgheim, who has been involved in the company since joining its board in 1992.
Long-term partner
It was announced just before Easter that Ferd was buying 40% of the share capital of Fürst Medisinsk Laboratorium. The company continues to be majority-controlled by Asle Helgheim and family after the sale of shares to Ferd.
“We chose to partner with Ferd because it possesses a great deal of expertise as well as significant resources. I don’t mean its financial resources so much as its people. Ferd will contribute to the company through its significant expertise, which will be essential for developing Fürst further, both on existing platforms and into new markets”, comments Asle Helgheim.
Going forward, the company wants to offer its services in new areas, including in genetics. The company is also in the process of developing the IT tool WebMed, which is a modern patient notes system designed to give primary care doctors a better overview of each patient’s progress.
“Over the long term, we want to invest beyond Norway, initially in Sweden, and also to continue to improve our core business. To do this, we need a high-quality, ambitious and long-term partner”, explains Asle Helgheim.
Efficient solutions
At Ferd, the investment team consisted of Trond Solberg, Maria Syse-Nybraaten, Gustav Martinsen and Julie Wiese. Ferd and Fürst had been in contact with one another and had been exploring the possibility of a partnership since summer 2016.
“Following a strategic decision to gain exposure to the healthcare sector, we are very pleased with the opportunity of partnering with the Helgheim family to develop a company as exciting as Fürst”, comments Maria Syse-Nybraaten.
The entire article is available (in Norwegian) here.
