Parker Hannifin has bought Invensys` pneumatics business for $38m in cash. The business, which last year notched up sales of around $50m, includes Maxam Pneumatics in Redruth, Cornwall, Watts Fluidair in the US, and Climax in France.

Invensys chief executive Allen Yurko describes the sale as "an excellent deal for Invensys". He says he is confident that combining the operation with Parker`s existing activities "will create value that the business could not have created for Invensys".

The Invensys pneumatics operation, with sales of around $50m, employs some 415 people. Its products include valves, cylinders, actuators, filters, regulators and lubricators.

The operation will be integrated into Parker`s automation group, broadening its pneumatics capabilities. Group president Bob Bond describes the acquisition as "a strategic product-line addition that enhances our ability to serve the growing demand we`ve seen in our core markets". It presents "some terrific opportunities to accelerate our growth in key areas, with plenty of operating synergies," he adds.

Another recent Parker acquisition was the US-based Atlantic Tubing Company which makes high quality tubing and extrusions.

Shares in Invensys recently plunged by 36% in one day after the company warned that its sales were going to be lower than last year and that it was cutting up to 3,000 jobs.