CDMOs: Dynamic Industry M&A Players Ready for Inorganic Growth
To view our article on the Medical Product Outsourcing magazine website, click here.
“CDMOs are no longer secondary players; they are central to medtech’s growth strategy.”—Daniel Sheppard, managing director for CDMOs, MedWorld Advisors
Every year, medtech executives, investors, and supply chain leaders gather at the MPO Summit to network and measure this ever-changing industry’s “pulse.” The latest gathering (last month in San Francisco) addressed many of the issues currently impacting manufacturers, including reshoring, artificial intelligence (AI), sterilization, and the new QMSR. There was, however, a recurring topic amongst the speaker presentations and panel discussions: the central role contract design and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs) play in shaping medtech business strategy and M&A, fueling growth and consolidation, and fostering innovation.
Once regarded as outsourced vendors, today’s CDMOs are no longer support players; they are dealmakers, consolidators, and strategic partners. Their ability to integrate design, regulatory expertise, advanced materials, and large-scale manufacturing makes them indispensable to the industry. For investors, they represent resilient platforms with strong cash flows while OEMs regard them as both acquisition targets and long-term partners capable of accelerating time to market.
This year’s Summit attendees reflect this dynamic. Companies such as Freudenberg Medical, Cirtec Medical, TEAM Technologies Inc., Life Science Outsourcing (LSO), Tekni-Plex Inc., Cadence, UFP Technologies Inc., and ATL Technology represent the breadth of CDMO capabilities reshaping medtech. On the investment side, firms such as Vance St. Capital, Argosy Healthcare Partners, and JLL Partners highlight private equity’s crucial role in building platforms and consolidating capabilities.
There are several key trends influencing CDMO mergers and acquisitions this year. These trends include:
1. PE roll-ups domination: Since 2020, private equity–backed deals have outpaced strategic transactions by roughly two to one.
2. Selective buying from strategics: Companies such as Freudenberg Medical and UFP Technologies are prime examples of how acquisitions often target specific capabilities.
3. Reshoring as a multiplier: Domestic and nearshore assets now command valuation premiums.
4. Specialization wins: Cirtec Medical in neurostimulation, ATL Technology in interconnected solutions, Cadence in machining, and Command Medical in extrusion highlight the premium placed on niche expertise.
“The most attractive CDMOs are those that scale smartly while maintaining specialized expertise,” former Medtronic R&D executive Tom Wilmering recently noted.
The aforementioned trends are clearly evident in the M&A activity from the following highly active CDMOs (and Summit “all-stars”).
Freudenberg Medical: This key player has expanded both organically and inorganically. In 2020, the company acquired Merit Medical’s hypotube manufacturing assets, strengthening its minimally invasive catheter portfolio. Looking ahead, Freudenberg is likely to target acquisitions that expand into drug-device combination technologies, advanced catheter delivery systems, and digitally-enabled medtech products. Freudenberg exemplifies how established CDMOs strategically expand into high-value niches rather than waiting to be disrupted.
Cirtec Medical: Backed by 3i Group, Cirtec has executed an ambitious buy-and-build strategy, acquiring companies such as Vascotube GmbH (nitinol tubing), Top Tool Company (precision stamped components), Cactus Semiconductor (low-power, mixed-signal application-specific integrated circuits), and QMD’s Precision Components business. These moves have allowed Cirtec to evolve from a specialty manufacturer into a vertically integrated platform.
TEAM Technologies: In November 2024, Arlington Capital Partners acquired TEAM Technologies from Clearlake Capital Group. Less than a year later (July 2025), TEAM Technologies acquired Duke Empirical Inc., expanding its capabilities in polymer extrusion as well as cardiovascular product design and manufacturing. This sequence of transactions is representative of the private equity playbook—acquiring a strong platform, then pursuing bolt-on deals to build scale and technical depth.
Life Science Outsourcing: In January 2023, LSO completed its acquisition of packaging, sterilization, and cleanroom assembly specialist J-Pac Medical. The purchase broadened LSO’s footprint and strengthened its ability to provide turnkey solutions to both startups and established OEMs.
Tekni-Plex: In late 2023, Tekni-Plex acquired Seisa Medical, reinforcing its position in interventional therapies and materials science. Notably, this transaction marked Tekni-Plex’s 21st acquisition in the past decade.
Cadence: In January 2023, Cadence acquired Utitec, a manufacturer of miniature deep drawn medical device and commercial components, and the Florida facility of ARC Group Worldwide, adding metal injection molding and cleanroom plastic injection molding capabilities. These deals expanded Cadence’s engineering precision and scale—both critical differentiators in M&A valuations.
UFP Technologies: In 2022, UFP Technologies acquired Advant Medical Ltd., adding in-house injection molding expertise to its cache along with medical product development and cleanroom manufacturing capabilities in Ireland. Earlier, in 2018, UFP acquired Dielectrics, a designer, developer, and maker of devices using thermoplastic materials. These transactions demonstrate UFP Technologies’ ability to broaden its global footprint while augmenting its specialized expertise.
ATL Technologies: This company has steadily grown through deals in interconnect solutions and assembly technologies. Fondly for MedWorld Advisors, one of ATL’s early acquisitions was the 2015 purchase of MedConx Inc., a California-based manufacturer of connection technology for disposable medical device developers. This acquisition added a very critical orthopedic strategic customer for ATL Technologies and was also the first M&A deal for MedWorld Advisors’ founders after corporate careers on the other side of the table at Medtronic plc, Draeger Medical, and others.
Fueling much of the consolidation in the CDMO sector is private equity. PE firms buy and merge smaller companies to form larger, more efficient platforms, leveraging economies of scale to drive greater profitability. A brief look at some of these influential players follows.
Vance Street Capital: This firm has built a strong reputation by investing in precision manufacturing companies and pursuing buy-and-build strategies to create scaled medtech platforms. The company regularly participates in the MPO Summit to both understand current CDMO industry dynamics and also meet potential future acquisition targets.
Argosy Healthcare Partners: Last year’s recapitalization and partnership with Command Medical Products enabled Argosy Healthcare to enter the CDMO sector in a major way. Its investment highlights PE’s role in strengthening specialized CDMOs and positioning them for growth. Command Medical is a key player in the extrusion space.
JLL Partners: JLL has played a major role in medtech consolidation since co-investing in Viant Medical with Water Street Healthcare Partners in 2016. Viant Medical has itself expanded with additional facilities in the United States and Mexico, creating a global CDMO leader. JLL’s strategy demonstrates how PE can transform an acquired company into a market leader.
Indeed, a new reality is dawning—CDMOs are at the heart of medtech’s future. Companies like Freudenberg Medical, Cirtec Medical, TEAM Technologies, LSO, Tekni-Plex, Cadence, UFP Technologies, and ATL Technologies—backed by investors such as Vance Street, Argosy Healthcare, and JLL—are not only executing manufacturing but actively redefining the industry through consolidation, specialization, and innovation.
CDMOs are essential partners to OEMs and represent some of the most attractive investment platforms in healthcare. For the industry as a whole, they represent the M&A dynamic that is driving the next wave of medtech growth.
About the Authors:
Florence Joffroy-Black, CM&AA, is a longtime marketing and M&A expert with significant experience in the medical technology industry, including working for multi-national corporations based in the United States, Germany, and Israel. She currently is CEO at MedWorld Advisors and can be reached at florencejblack@medworldadvisors.com.
Dave Sheppard, CM&AA, is a former medical technology Fortune 500 executive and is now focused on M&A as a managing director at MedWorld Advisors. He can be reached at
davesheppard@medworldadvisors.com.
To view our article on the Medical Product Outsourcing magazine website, click here.
