Medical Device Link.

Improving Customer Insight

Lincoff

The year 2009 finds the world in a state of severe economic uncertainty. Medical device and diagnostics suppliers, once largely immune to economic downturns, now are following other industries in finding ways to get the most out of every customer relationship and interaction. To do so, many companies have realized they must become much better at converting commercial data into true customer insights through the use of sales and marketing analytics.

For many device companies, it's daunting to address the gaps that exist in their sales and marketing analytics capabilities. The challenge is compounded by the fact that companies wanting to improve their business and customer insight capabilities must do so while continuing to meet aggressive sales and profit goals. So, device companies must find a way to transform while they perform.

In this article, marketing experts Richard Lincoff and Bruce Carlson discuss how your company can make quick and steady progress toward true sales and marketing insights by deploying a framework that incorporates tools and processes, coupled with a focus on enabling IT infrastructure. This transformation can be completed while your device company continues to perform, achieving both top-line revenue and bottom-line profit growth. [MORE]

Avoiding ‘Asbestos’ Risks When Buying a Medical Device Company

Synder

In the field of real estate, the presence of asbestos in a building is a high-risk item, because it triggers a host of legal and regulatory concerns. When purchasing a building, buyers expect that it will be inspected for this risky substance, because having asbestos can fundamentally alter a buyer's interest in the deal.

In the same way, when seeking to purchase a medical device company, buyers should be looking for asbestos-like risks that could arise for such a company-and potentially alter the viability of the deal.

Historically, buyers of medical device companies have tended to focus on the intellectual property and regulatory aspects of the target company's operations. Due diligence is directed toward determining whether the device company truly owns the products it sells, or whether the labeling of those products is consistent with FDA regulations. Although these issues remain high on the list of topics to be considered in the course of such a purchase, new high-risk areas are emerging today that deserve similar priority. In this article, attorney Lynn Shapiro Snyder Savvy outlines how buyers can examine the robustness of a potential acquisition's corporate compliance program. [MORE]

Cook Launch Targets IR Business

Sirota

Sailing a sloop in a force 8 gale seems a wiser decision than launching a new business into the current economic headwinds. Yet, Cook Medical (Bloomington, IN) has done just that, announcing in February the debut of its interventional radiology strategic business unit. The SBU will invest significantly in new devices and technologies to support interventional radiologists performing oncology, nonvascular, venous, angiographic, and other IR medical procedures, according to Cook.

Despite the economic climate, Cook Medical believes it has a breeze at its back in the form of new products and growing global interest in IR, according to Dan Sirota, global business unit leader for interventional radiology. Longer life expectancies and cancer rates played a role in the decision to launch, notes Sirota.

Sirota declined to say how much Cook Medical would invest in devices and technology or how much the new launch cost the company, which is privately held. “I will tell you that the new business is the fourth largest of our nine businesses,” he says. “It comes out already with a pretty healthy base [of operations].” [MORE]

IP Watch: AdvaMed Denounces Patent Reform Legislation

Stephen J. Ubl, president and CEO of the Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed), has expressed concern over the Patent Reform Act of 2009.

“We believe the legislation is not in the best interests of American patients; it will weaken existing patent protections, and it will have an adverse effect on medical technology innovation,” he said. “We are very concerned about the legislation's apportionment of damages provision. Patent reform legislation should not provide significant advantages to one business model at the expense of others, and this provision could limit the economic damages for which an infringer can be held accountable.”

In addition, he said that a reduction in damages to the injured company serves to cheapen medical technology intellectual property and, in fact, could have the perverse consequence of encouraging infringement.

Ubl's remarks were in response to a hearing held by the Senate Judiciary Committee, chaired by Patrick Leahy (D-VT). The final direction of patent reform, he said, could have serious implications on the U.S. medical technology industry's ability to continue to innovate and provide solutions not only to the challenges facing U.S patients, but for the healthcare system as a whole.

This issue's IP Watch offers more about the Smith & Nephew's case against KCI in Germany, as well as other recent litigation moves involving medtech intellectual properties. [MORE]

BIOMEDevice — April 22-23, 2009 — Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, Boston, MA

Attend New England's new MD&M event! The BIOMEDevice exposition will include 300 leading suppliers to the medical device industry and the nation's top resources for biopharmaceutical and medical device design and manufacturing. For complete event details including expo hall highlights, a current list of exhibitors, information on the co-located BIOMEDevice Executive Forum, and easy online registration for free expo hall admission, visit www.BIOMEDeviceBoston.com. [MORE]

Improving Customer Insight

Avoiding 'Asbestos' Risks When Buying a Medical Device Company

Cook Launch Targets IR Business

IP Watch: AdvaMed Denounces Patent Reform Legislation

Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz PC (Memphis, TN) launched a Drug, Device, and Life Sciences Industry Service Team that combines resources from its health law, business, intellectual property, and product liability practices. The team addresses the multidisciplinary needs of pharmaceutical, medical device, and life sciences clients. Attorneys can provide counsel in the legislative, regulatory, and economic environment and advise on strategies for interaction with FDA, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property, customs, labor and employment, government investigations, product liability issues, and litigation matters.

Remote monitoring programs will soon be available to patients with implanted cardiac rhythm management (CRM) devices. Sorin Group (Milan) and Orange Business Services (Paris) have entered into an agreement to create a system for the patient population. This new program is based on Sorin's implanted CRM devices' ability to send data to a non-invasive monitoring system located at the patient's home and on Orange Business Services' capabilities to manage the transmission of the data to the physician. Using these data, physicians can detect arrhythmia or cardiac disease progression and provide timely therapy.

Baxa Corp. (Englewood, CO) has acquired ForHealth Technologies Inc., a Florida-based healthcare robotics and software company. The move is a strategic expansion of Baxa's focus on health-system pharmacy automation and IV room productivity. Terms were not disclosed. The ForHealth acquisition adds robotic system IntelliFill i.v., and workflow manager IntelliFlowRx to the existing Baxa products for pharmacy operations management.

Victoria, Canada-based device developer, Starfish Medical has acquired ViVitro Systems Inc. (also Victoria). ViVitro develops prosthetic heart valve test equipment and provides related testing and consulting services. Products will continue to be sold under the ViVitro brand, but assets will be rolled into a new, wholly owned subsidiary of Starfish. StarFish Medical intends to evolve the current product line and to actively market it to worldwide clients including medical device companies, universities, and regulatory bodies.