US-based electromechanical and electronics conglomerate Ametek has been on a shopping spree, buying Prestolite Electric - whose activities include a DC motor business - and Rochester Instrument Systems, which supplies instrumentation for the process and utility industries.

Ametek paid around $60m in cash for Prestolite, which produces contactors, solenoids, and battery chargers, as well as DC motors. Its sales last year totalled $71m and it employs more than 500 people at six sites worldwide, including a plant in Leyland, Lancashire.

Ametek already makes motors for floor care and other specialised applications, but the Prestolite acquisition will widen the scope of its operations. The "DC motor business provides us with market expansion opportunities through its strong position in the materials handling and electric motor drive markets," says Ametek chief executive Frank Hermance.

In its second acquisition, Ametek has paid $19m for Rochester Instruments which makes power and process monitoring equipment, including transducers, event and transient recorders, and alarm monitoring systems. It employs 200 people at bases in the US and the UK.