© 2021 SCHAUENBURG INTERNATIONAL GMBH
7. January 2026
Schauenburg International today announced the successful divestment of Markes International and SepSolve Analytical to Velaris, a global laboratory-automation platform backed by Battery Ventures. Markes International has been part of the Schauenburg International Group portfolio for more than a decade. During that time the business grew significantly, expanded its leading market position and further developed its top-notch product portfolio. Joining the Velaris family marks a significant step in Markes’ strategic journey.
Schauenburg International originally acquired a majority share of Markes International from its founders Elizabeth Woolfenden and Alun Cole in 2013, who remained actively involved as outstanding partners throughout the entire ownership period. Together with the management team, Schauenburg International supported the company’s transformation into a globally recognized group and leading provider of advanced analytical technologies. Markes International experienced substantial internationalization, continuous technological innovation and strong expansion of its global sales and service footprint across Europe, North America and Asia. Investments were made with a clear long-term perspective, enabling Markes to address increasingly complex analytical challenges across environmental, food, security, industrial life science and defence end markets.
“Under the new ownership of Velaris and with Battery Ventures backing, Markes becomes part of a leading platform that will strengthen the company’s long-term development opportunities,” says Florian G. Schauenburg, CEO of Schauenburg International. “Markes has been part of the Schauenburg International Group portfolio for more than twelve years and has delivered breakthrough innovation and expanded its global footprint significantly. It is important for us to ensure the next level of Markes’ strategic development under the umbrella of complementary businesses at Velaris. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Elizabeth Woolfenden and Alun Cole for their entrepreneurial vision, innovation and long-standing partnership, Nigel Fry for his leadership and to all employees for their dedication and commitment.”
The successful sale of Markes International underlines Schauenburg International’s role as a long-term strategic investor that develops companies in close partnership with founders and management teams, creating sustainable value over time and ensuring continuity and profitable growth beyond ownership transitions. As part of the Velaris platform, Markes International now becomes part of an even larger global family of laboratory-automation brands, alongside Skalar Analytical, LCTech, PromoChrom, EST Analytical, GERSTEL and TE Instruments. This new environment provides Markes with a strong platform, complementary capabilities and a new home to continue its growth journey and further strengthen its global market position.
About Markes International
Founded in 1997 in Wales, Markes International provides advanced technologies for gas chromatography (GC) and mass spectrometry (MS), for applications including environmental monitoring, materials testing, food and beverage analysis, flavour and fragrance science, defence and forensics. Markes develops thermal desorption and automated sample preparation technologies for the analysis of volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds in air and materials. Its portfolio supports targeted and untargeted analysis, enabling method compliance and increased throughput across the widest range of sample types and analytes on a single platform for cryogen, solvent and cylinder-free operation. SepSolve Analytical, (Markes sub-brand) complements this with high-performance GC and GC×GC platforms, time-of-flight mass spectrometry and advanced data-processing software, delivering enhanced separations and deeper analytical insight. Together, Markes and SepSolve provide integrated, end-to-end analytical workflows from sample introduction through to more actionable insightful data for laboratories worldwide.
Learn more at www.markes.com
About Velaris
Velaris is home to some of the world’s leading brands in lab automation and is supported by the global investment firm Battery Ventures. Following an initial investment in Skalar Analytical, a provider of wet chemistry analysis, in 2023, Velaris has grown further in the field of environmental sciences on a global scale organically and through acquisitions. In 2024, GERSTEL, a major player in the flavor, fragrance and food science industry, joined the group, followed in 2025 by Trace Elemental Instruments, which develops and manufactures combustion analyzers for petrochemical and industrial applications. Supported by its leading brands, Velaris provides its customers with rapid innovation and excellent customer service, powering scientific research around the world.
Learn more at www.velaris.com