Here’s hoping that your Thanksgiving holiday was festive and that everyone at your table found at least one reason to be thankful. Heading into December, here is the latest batch of news from the medical products community. Please click the link for more.
Leadership News
Joe Kiani, founder, CEO, and Chairman of the Board of Massimo Corporation, has been named the Ernst & Young National Entrepreneur of the Year 2012 Life Sciences Award Winner. The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award recognizes leaders who demonstrate innovation, financial success, and personal commitment as they create and build world-class businesses.
Respicardia, Minnetonka, MN, has appointed Jay Millerhagen as vice president of clinical affairs and market development. In addition to developing and executing clinical trial strategies, he will be responsible for developing and expanding the market for product offerings.
Nordson MARCH, Concord, CA, a global leader in plasma processing technology, has appointed Jonathan Doan to the position of director of marketing. He will develop new marketing programs to promote Nordson MARCH's advanced plasma treatment systems for the semiconductor, printed circuit board, life science, hard disk drive, LED, and solar/photovoltaic industries.
Christer de Flon has been named Sales and Marketing Director at Xvivo Perfusion, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Expansions/Moves
Medical Murray, Inc., Lake Zurich, IL, has opened a new design and development facility in Charlotte, NC. Medical Murray specializes in the design and contract manufacturing of catheter systems, permanent implants, and bioabsorbable technology.
Flambeau Medical Markets Group purchased a building adjacent to the company’s Phoenix, AZ, two-building campus, which it will renovate into a Class 7 medical device assembly room with a separate Class 8 injection molding room.
Staunton, Va.-based Cadence, Inc., a leading provider of medical device outsourcing solutions, announced that it will open a finished medical device facility in Cranberry Township, PA, in the first quarter of 2013.
NuSil Technology LLC, Carpinteria, CA, a global leader in silicone materials for the medical implants, healthcare, aerospace and defense, electronics and engineering, and skin care markets, has completed a fourth phase of expansion at its facility in Bakersfield, CA. The newest building is NuSil’s fourth building on the 15-acre campus and is part of a multi-year plan to expand to a total of seven buildings.
On November 7, Mori Seiki Co., Ltd. opened its newly-built Mori Seiki Manufacturing facility in Davis, CA, a first for the company in America. The factory and the adjacent Digital Technology Laboratory – an R&D center – collaborate with Mori Seiki Japan on a 24-hour work cycle to support global manufacturing solutions.
Swissray International Inc., Hochdorf, Switzerland, which designs, manufactures and markets proprietary state-of-the-art direct digital Radiography ddR technology , recently signed an agreement with partners in Taiwan and plans to set up a medical optical-imaging device R&D center as well as a factory in Taiwan.
Medical device manufacturer Maquet Cardiopulmonary AG, based in Germany’s Neckar-Alb region, is investing in a new clean room production center and research laboratory in Hechingen, which will be used to process and further develop its range of knitted textile-based medical devices and other products.
Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc., Waltham, MA, announced the official opening of its new facility in Suzhou, China, for the manufacturing of life sciences consumables and equipment. The facility expands the company’s global manufacturing footprint and establishes local production capabilities to meet increased demand in China and other Asia-Pacific markets.
Mergers/Acquisitions/Collaborations
GE Healthcare, a division of General Electric centered in the United Kingdom, has acquired U-Systems, Inc., Sunnyvale, CA, a medical device manufacturer that recently won expanded US FDA approval for a first-in-class ultrasound breast cancer screening device.
Disposable medical device maker Merit Medical Systems Inc., South Jordan, UT, has agreed to buy Thomas Medical Products, Malvern, PA, a division of GE Healthcare, which makes catheter-based vascular access devices used in heart rhythm management, cardiology, and radiology.
Kinetic Concepts, San Antonio, TX, is selling its Therapeutic Support Systems division to Getinge, a medical device manufacturer based in Sweden.
Medical imaging solutions developer Sync-Rx Ltd. , Netanya, Israel, has been acquired by US medical devices company Volcano Corporation, San Diego, CA. Sync-Rx develops automated online image processing to optimize and facilitate trans-catheter cardiovascular interventions.
Sparton Corporation, Schaumburg, IL, a supplier of electromechanical devices, sub-assemblies, and related services announced that its subsidiary, Sparton Onyx, LLC signed a definitive agreement to acquire Onyx EMS, LLC. Onyx, with sites in both Watertown, SD, and Minneapolis, MN, primarily manufactures medical devices for OEM and emerging technology companies.
Wright Medical, Arlington, TN, a global orthopaedic medical device company, will purchase BioMimetic Therapeutics, Inc., Franklin, TN, a biotechnology company specializing in the development and commercialization of clinically proven products to promote the healing of musculoskeletal injuries and diseases.
Bausch + Lomb, Rochester, NY, an eye health technology company, announced that it would acquire Technolas Perfect Vision GmbH, Munich, Germany, a manufacturer of ophthalmic laser technology.
Skanray Technologies, Mysore, India, a leading international medical equipment manufacturing company is acquiring L&T Medical & Systems, also in Mysore, which includes a range of products and equipment, such as patient-monitoring systems such as ECG, pulse oximetry, invasive BP, capnography and anaesthesia gas monitors.
InfinityQS International, Inc., Chantilly, VA, a global authority on manufacturing intelligence and enterprise quality, announced a strategic partnership with Keops Technologies, Inc., a leading industry IT expert focused on integration and deployment of manufacturing operation management systems that increase efficiency and improve quality. With offices in Montreal, Madrid, and Paris, and recent expansion in Dubai, Keops has formalized its partnership with InfinityQS to complement its existing manufacturing solutions with ProFicient, InfinityQS’ enterprise quality hub powered by statistical process control.
Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, both in Boston, MA, have entered into respective research collaborations with digital imaging company Canon USA, Inc., to develop unique solutions for detecting and treating disease. Canon’s R&D team will work with imaging experts from both hospitals to apply optics to advanced imaging technologies and other medical devices.
Miscellaneous
Joining Technologies, Inc., East Granby, CT, an innovator in industrial laser applications, announced that it is on schedule to be certified this year to the ISO 13485 Medical Device Standard, one of very few welding service companies committed to meeting this standard. The company is committed to processing parts to the same rigorous standards as its major medical device customers.
Teleflex Medical OEM, Raleigh, NC, was named a 2012 recipient of the DeviceMed Award for Medical Technology Innovation. Teleflex Medical OEM was selected for developing a novel process that joins dissimilar tubing segments when fabricating catheters. The award ceremony was held November 14, 2012, in conjunction with the COMPAMED International Trade Fair in Düsseldorf, Germany.
Medical imaging company Gamma Medica, Inc., Northridge, CA, was named a winner of the 2012 Patrick Soon-Shiong Innovation Awards given by the Los Angeles Business Journal. The company develops the LumaGEM Molecular Breast Imaging System, which allows physicians to identify tumors in dense breast tissue.
PTI Engineered Plastics, Macomb, MI, an industry leader in tooling and injection molding, was honored as a “Top 100” company in Michigan, based on employee feedback in a survey conducted by Workplace Dynamics, on behalf of the Detroit Free Press newspaper. This is PTI’s third nomination and their second win in the category of mid-size (150 to 499 employees) companies.
Averna, a developer of test solutions and services for communications and electronics device-makers worldwide, announced its inclusion in the prestigious Deloitte Technology Fast 50™ and Fast 500™. These programs rank the fastest growing technology, media, telecommunications, life sciences, and clean technology companies in Canada and North America respectively.
CardioMEMS, Atlanta, GA, a medical device company that has developed and is commercializing proprietary wireless sensing and communication technology for the human body, has been named as one of four finalists for the prestigious Intel Innovation Award, a part of the 2012 Health IT Leadership Summit that will take place on December 4.
Marsh Electronics, Inc., Milwaukee, WI, is celebrating its 75th year in business, distributing a wide range of electronic components from leading manufacturers of passive, electromechanical, and power semi-conductor products.
FANUC FA America, Hoffman Estates, IL, is proud to announce that it is celebrating 35 years of CNC excellence in the Americas. FANUC FA America is the largest CNC sales, service, and support organization in the Americas providing a single source of end-to-end CNC solutions for machine tool and nontraditional applications.
Avery Dennison Corporation , Chicago, IL, has renamed and repositioned its medical solutions group as Vancive Medical Technologies. The new name replaces Avery Dennison Medical Solutions and emphasizes the company’s renewed focus on creating intuitive, cost-efficient products that help improve the quality and outcomes of healthcare.
