Steris Corp. -- the city of Mentor's biggest employer -- announced today that it is acquiring U.S. Endoscopy.

Walt Rosebrough, the president and CEO of STERIS, said the purchase will significantly expand STERIS' presence in the gastrointestinal endoscopy market and gain direct access to the procedural spaces in the GI market with a franchise of proprietary, single-use consumable medical devices.

U.S. Endoscopy, which was founded and is based in Mentor, is  a leader in the design, manufacture and sale of therapeutic and diagnostic medical devices and support accessories used in the gastrointestinal endoscopy markets worldwide.

"The addition of US Endoscopy to our current portfolio is a natural extension of our presence in the GI market," Rosebrough said in a statement.

"They have generated double-digit organic growth for many years through successful new product development and the acquisition provides STERIS immediate scale with a direct sales force in the U. S. and a strong brand name.  This acquisition is aligned with our strategy to expand in areas with attractive market dynamics that are adjacent to our current businesses.  We are impressed with the strength of their management team and look forward to working with them to capture the opportunities ahead of us."

STERIS has agreed to pay $270 million in an all-cash transaction to acquire US Endoscopy. However, the actual purchase price is expected to be about $220 after some anticipated tax benefits.

The transaction is subject to certain closing conditions and is expected to close by the end of the second quarter of fiscal 2013. STERIS will finance the acquisition through a combination of cash on hand and borrowings under its existing credit facility.

The business will be integrated into STERIS's Healthcare business segment. STERIS will also be purchasing certain land and buildings utilized by the U.S. Endoscopy business for about $7 million.

Furthermore, this purchase ensures that U.S. Endoscopy will remain in Mentor.

"We're very pleased that U.S. Endoscopy will be staying in Mentor," Mentor City Manager Kenneth Filipiak said. "We've been working with STERIS to provide some assistance to make this deal happen.

"Both STERIS and U.S. Endoscopy represent a niche that Mentor and Northeast Ohio does very well -- world-beating, high-tech medical equipment."

Gulam Khan -- the president, CEO and co-chairman of U.S. Endoscopy -- said he was excited for U.S. Endoscopy to become part of STERIS.

"We are absolutely delighted to have the opportunity to become part of STERIS, a company we respect and know well," said Khan in a statement.

"Not only will we gain the size and scale necessary to continue to innovate and grow over the long term, we will also ensure that we can and will remain a vital part of the Greater Cleveland community. While we have had great success the last two decades, having the support of STERIS will better enable us to take full advantage of global opportunities."

U.S. Endoscopy was founded in 1991. It recently undertook a$4.7 million expansion that added more than 100 jobs to its payroll. The Mentor Area Chamber of Commerce also recognized it as its busines of the year in 2011.

STERIS creates medical technologies in the areas of infection prevention, critical care, surgery and contamination control. It has a strong presence in the procedural spaces within the hospital, in particular the operating room, but has not historically had a presence in the procedural spaces within the GI environment

The acquisition will add direct access to a multi-billion dollar global market, where U.S. Endoscopy has focused on technology and innovation to build a pipeline of new products which propelled their revenue growth to greater than 15 percent compounded during the past five years.

STERIS has been in an expansion mode lately. It announced it would be investing $8 million to create a new manufacturing facility in Mentor.