Post 200: Top D.C.-Area Businesses

Danaher Corp. / DHR

About Danaher Corp.

2099 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, 12th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20006
www.danaher.com | 202-828-0850 | Founded: 1984

Industry: Manufacturing | Category: Top 100 Companies

Danaher still believes in growth through acquisition. To that end, the company last year acquired Sybron Dental Specialties for $2 billion and the assumption of $200 million in debt. Sybron is a leading manufacturer of a broad range of consumables and small equipment for dentistry, including the specialty markets of orthodontics, endodontics and implantology. Sybron Dental had annual revenue of about $650 million in the most recent fiscal year.
The company in November bought Vision Systems of Melbourne, Australia, for $500 million. Founded in 1987, Vision has operations in Australia, the United States and Britain and has revenue of $100 million a year. Vision's products are used for tissue preparation and staining to assist with the diagnosis of cancer and infectious diseases.
Danaher president and chief executive H. Lawrence Culp Jr.'s goal is to reach $25 billion in sales by 2012. A recent BusinessWeek profile of Danaher called its two founders, Steven M. and Mitchell P. Rales, very private brothers who are two of the wealthiest people in the United States, with an estimated worth of about $2.2 billion each. Steven, 55, and Mitchell, 50, together hold about 20 percent of the company's 308 million shares of common stock.

Chairman: Steven M. Rales

President and CEO: H. Lawrence Culp Jr.

2007 Financial Data

Total employees: 45,000 | Local employees: 46

Company Leadership

H. Lawrence Culp Jr. President and CEO
Philip W. Knisely EVP
Steven E. Simms EVP
Daniel L. Comas EVP and CFO
James A. Lico EVP

Source: Compensation data provided by Equilar, Inc..

Philip W. Knisely
Executive Vice President
$5,335,108
Salary: $635,000
H. Lawrence Culp Jr.
President and Chief Executive Officer
$5,263,758
Salary: $1,100,000
Daniel L. Comas
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
$3,954,646
Salary: $500,000
James A. Lico
Executive Vice President
$3,853,487
Salary: $450,000
Thomas P. Joyce Jr.
Executive Vice President
$3,786,938
Salary: $450,000

Did You Know

Danaher Corp. is a highly profitable maker of a wide range of products such as dental surgery devices, wrenches, electronic testing equipment, gas pumps, submarine periscopes and toolboxes. Its more than 600 subsidiary companies are found on every continent but Africa and Antartica. Brand names include Fluke; Sears Craftsman; Gilbarco Veeder-Root gas station pumps; Kerr, Ormco and KaVo dental equipment; Armstrong and Allen wrenches; Jacobs Chuck drill parts; and Leica Microsystems.

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