Atlas Copco’s vacuum business: orders, equipment and manufacturing

Atlas Copco’s vacuum portfolio spans semiconductor equipment, industrial pumps, service and leak detection.

Semiconductor demand lifts orders

Atlas Copco, based in Sweden, received orders worth 50.95 billion Swedish kronor in the second quarter of 2026, up 27% from a year earlier. Organic order growth reached 26%. The total exceeded the 44.67 billion kronor average forecast compiled by LSEG. Adjusted operating earnings reached 9.46 billion kronor, against a 9.25 billion kronor forecast, while revenue increased 9%. Strong semiconductor demand supported the order intake; the vacuum business supplies components to semiconductor equipment manufacturers including ASML.

Chief executive Vagner Rego said every business area delivered double-digit order growth, with high activity across almost all customer segments. Atlas Copco expected near-term customer activity to remain at its current level. Its shares were approximately 6% higher at 0926 GMT on Jul 16, 2026, after trading around 3% lower before the results. Reported operating profit was 9.249 billion kronor, while the adjusted figure excluded items affecting comparability. Operating cash flow rose to 6.758 billion kronor from 6.114 billion.

The preceding quarter

Atlas Copco's first-quarter figures, published on Apr 28, 2026, combined organic expansion with lower reported totals. Orders were 45.395 billion kronor, compared with 46.604 billion a year earlier, while organic order growth was 5%. Revenue declined 5% to 40.540 billion kronor from 42.730 billion, despite an organic increase of 3%. Reported operating profit was 8.261 billion kronor and its margin was 20.4%, compared with 8.605 billion and 20.1%. Excluding items affecting comparability, operating profit was 8.329 billion kronor, against 8.869 billion, with an adjusted margin of 20.5% rather than 20.8%. Operating cash flow fell to 4.355 billion kronor from 6.575 billion. Profit before tax was 8.114 billion kronor, compared with 8.470 billion in the previous-year quarter. Return on capital employed was 23%, compared with 27%. The company identified vacuum equipment as the driver of organic order and revenue growth. Its customer-activity outlook was unchanged from January.

Edwards joins the group

The vacuum portfolio's acquisition history includes the Edwards transaction completed on Jan 9, 2014. Edwards Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom, supplied vacuum products and abatement solutions used in semiconductor and flat-panel-display manufacturing, alongside other industrial applications. Atlas Copco initially paid Edwards shareholders $9.25 per share. An additional payment of up to $1.25 per share remained conditional on the final audited 2013 income statement, giving a maximum total of $10.50. At that point, the audited statement was expected before the end of the first quarter of 2014. Edwards was to be delisted from Nasdaq following the acquisition. The acquired operation entered Atlas Copco's newly formed Vacuum Solutions division within Compressor Technique. That was the organisational placement announced at closing, before the later acquisitions described within the separate Vacuum Technique business area.

Atlas Copco Group

Leybold broadens industrial applications

Atlas Copco completed the Leybold vacuum acquisition on Sep 1, 2016, following an agreement announced on Nov 20, 2015. The seller was Switzerland-based OC Oerlikon Corporation. Leybold was headquartered in Cologne, Germany, and employed approximately 1,600 people. Its 2015 revenue was €340 million, equivalent to 3.15 billion Swedish kronor in the acquisition announcement. The transaction price was based on an enterprise value of €486 million, or 4.52 billion kronor. These figures described different measures: the acquired company's annual revenue and the enterprise-value basis for the purchase. Leybold supplied vacuum solutions for clean, particle-free environments. Its applications included automotive manufacturing, metallurgy, microchip coating and analytical instruments. The business therefore served industrial processes beyond the semiconductor-equipment customers highlighted in Atlas Copco's July 2026 order announcement.

Cryogenic pumps and chamber solutions

The acquisition of Brooks' Semiconductor Cryogenics Business closed on Jul 1, 2019, after its announcement on Aug 27, 2018. It included cryopump operations in Chelmsford, Massachusetts, and Monterrey, Mexico, a worldwide sales and service network, and Brooks Automation's 50% holding in Ulvac Cryogenics, or UCI. Atlas Copco specified that UCI revenue would not be consolidated into group revenue; its share of UCI's profit after tax would instead be treated as profit from joint ventures. The acquired cryogenic business had approximately 400 employees and was headquartered in Chelmsford. Its CTI-Cryogenics and Polycold product lines supplied cryopumps and cryochillers for semiconductor and related industries. High-vacuum pumps in the portfolio remove water vapour and hydrogen from semiconductor and industrial processes. Atlas Copco announced a new Semiconductor Chamber Solutions division within Vacuum Technique, headquartered in Chelmsford, to concentrate on chamber solutions for semiconductor and flat-panel-display customers.

A dry-pump investment plan in New York

Edwards announced a planned dry-vacuum-pump factory in Genesee County, New York, on Nov 2, 2022. The site was the Western New York Science and Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park, known as WNY STAMP. The first phase was a $127 million project covering approximately 240,000 square feet, or 22,000 square metres. Across seven years, the wider project was expected to reach $319 million and create about 600 skilled jobs. The initial phase and the longer investment programme were separate scopes within the same plan. Edwards then targeted full operation in late 2024, with alignment to the LEED building-certification system. These were the original construction and operating intentions. Geert Follens, then president of Vacuum Technique, linked the investment to locating manufacturing close to customers. Senator Charles Schumer and New York governor Kathy Hochul welcomed the proposed investment and employment. Edwards expected local production to reduce carbon emissions associated with international freight while adding capacity alongside its existing dry-pump factories. The proposed energy supply was to be entirely renewable.

Vacuum and abatement capacity in Korea

A separate manufacturing project announced on Nov 23, 2022, concerned Asan City in South Korea's Chungcheongnam-do province. Edwards was building a 15,000-square-metre factory for vacuum and abatement systems used in semiconductor production. The plan added to existing Edwards facilities in Cheonan, including a dry-vacuum-pump factory that had opened in June 2022. Construction in Asan had recently begun when the announcement was issued. Completion was then expected by the end of July 2023 and full operation during the third quarter of that year. The planned capacity covered the CSK and Edwards brands, including abatement equipment, liquid-delivery systems and integrated vacuum-and-abatement systems for advanced semiconductor manufacturing. Follens described the project as a commitment to customers' future innovation and growth in Korea and other markets. The published timetable remained a forecast in that announcement, rather than a confirmation of subsequent commissioning.

Remanufacturing and cryopump facilities

Edwards' Dec 13, 2022, announcement covered two additional facilities in the United States. The 200,000-square-foot Chandler, Arizona, facility had started operating in late November. It provided vacuum-pump remanufacturing and assembly, using automation and data systems for disassembly, cleaning, inspection, repair, component replacement and reassembly. Approximately 200 additional local jobs were expected. A cryopump manufacturing and research facility in Haverhill, north of Boston, was scheduled to begin operations in mid-December. Around 280 positions would transfer from Chelmsford and approximately 60 additional positions were planned; transferred positions were not newly created roles. These roles covered skilled manufacturing, engineering and technology work. Chandler had Green Globes building certification, water recycling, electric-vehicle charging and solar panels. Haverhill incorporated efficient heating, ventilation and air conditioning, solar panels and two underground water-retention units supplying surrounding trees and landscaping. Follens linked the projects to customer proximity, capacity and local supply.

Direct service coverage in Mexico

Atlas Copco completed the acquisition of the vacuum-related assets and brand of Montajes Electromecánicos e Ingeniería, or MEISA, on May 7, 2024. MEISA supplied vacuum pumps and related services to industrial customers in Mexico, with locations in Queretaro and Monterrey. The business was founded in 1985. Its relationship with the Leybold brand extended back to 1986, when it became a distributor. In announcing the agreement on Apr 4, Geert Follens described direct customer service and a stronger local market presence as the objectives. The completed acquisition brought 52 employees into Atlas Copco, compared with approximately 45 employees anticipated in the earlier agreement announcement. The purchase price was not disclosed. The acquired activities entered the Vacuum Technique Service Division, retaining a service and distribution role within the broader vacuum-equipment portfolio.

Australian distribution and service locations

AVT Services joined Atlas Copco on Aug 2, 2024. The privately owned Australian business supplied vacuum pumps, systems and associated services. It was headquartered in Sydney, with additional locations in Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane, and had 15 employees. AVT had served the Australian vacuum market since its establishment in 1995 and had previously been an official distributor for the Edwards vacuum brand. Follens said the acquisition would bring Atlas Copco closer to customers in key parts of Australia and strengthen its local service capabilities. The purchase price was undisclosed. AVT became part of the vacuum service division, adding a customer-facing network rather than a newly announced manufacturing plant.

Helium leak detection in China

The acquisition of Anhui NOY Technologies closed on Sep 3, 2024. NOY manufactured helium leak detectors, principally for the Chinese market, at its headquarters and manufacturing location in Hefei City, Anhui province. The company had 78 employees and generated 121 million Chinese yuan in revenue in 2023. Atlas Copco gave an equivalent of approximately 178 million Swedish kronor using that year's average exchange rate. This was the acquired company's historical sales figure; the purchase price was not disclosed. NOY entered the Scientific Vacuum division within Vacuum Technique, adding locally manufactured leak-detection equipment to the group.

European leak-detection manufacturing

ESA Service, a manufacturer of leak-detection and gas-recovery systems, became part of Atlas Copco on Nov 8, 2024. Its headquarters and manufacturing operation were in Treviglio, Italy. The company employed 40 people and had 2023 revenue of €10.3 million, corresponding to 118 million Swedish kronor. The purchase price was undisclosed. Atlas Copco had announced the transaction on Oct 2, targeting completion in the fourth quarter. ESA Service entered the Scientific Vacuum division. In the earlier announcement, Follens said the acquisition would strengthen leak-detection expertise and add a European manufacturer of leak-detection and gas-recovery systems. ESA had been founded in 1980 by its then owners and served a diversified range of industrial customers. The November closing confirmed completion within the quarter originally envisaged.

Abatement equipment and replacement materials

New Star Technology, founded in 2015 and located in Suzhou, China, joined Atlas Copco on Aug 4, 2025. It manufactured gas-abatement equipment using absorber and catalyst technology and also produced replacement absorber materials. Semiconductor customers formed its main market. New Star's 2024 revenue was approximately 50 million Chinese yuan, equivalent to 73 million Swedish kronor at the average 2024 exchange rate. The acquisition brought 38 employees into the group and its purchase price was undisclosed. Atlas Copco had announced the agreement on Jul 9, with completion expected in the third quarter. Koen Lauwers, president of Vacuum Technique, described the intended benefits as a stronger local abatement offering and the ability to manufacture absorber materials locally in China. The acquired business entered the Semiconductor division within Vacuum Technique.

Gas, vapour and liquid delivery systems

Atlas Copco completed the purchase of assets associated with Stainless Design Concepts, or SDC, on Apr 2, 2026. SDC had been a division of CVD Equipment Corporation and was based in Saugerties, New York. It designed and manufactured ultra-high-purity gas and liquid-chemical delivery and distribution systems for semiconductor and industrial applications. The purchase price was approximately $16.9 million, and 26 employees joined Atlas Copco. SDC entered the Semiconductor Equipment division within Vacuum Technique. The Mar 24 agreement announcement had anticipated completion during the second quarter. Lauwers said the transaction would extend the group's gas, vapour and liquid-delivery range supplied under the Ceres brand. SDC had been founded in 1984 and had belonged to CVD since 1999, adding an established engineering operation to that part of the portfolio.

Vacuum chambers and turnkey testing

LACO Technologies joined Atlas Copco on May 4, 2026, following an agreement announced on Feb 20. Based in Salt Lake City, Utah, LACO designed and manufactured vacuum solutions, vacuum chambers and leak-detection systems for aerospace, research and development, and other industrial applications. Its 110 employees joined the group. LACO's 2025 revenue was approximately $25 million, corresponding to 247 million Swedish kronor at the average exchange rate for that year. The purchase price was not disclosed. The original agreement was subject to regulatory approval and targeted completion in the second quarter. Lauwers said it would add a US manufacturer of turnkey vacuum and leak-testing systems while extending the group's leak-detection expertise. LACO, founded as a family business in 1975, became part of the Scientific Vacuum division. Its stated product range included: