Biomedical Structures Buys Concordia Medical

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Two Rhode Island-based medical textile firms have merged—a move that company officials say sets the stage for future expansion.

Biomedical Structures LLC, a provider of biomedical textiles for medical devices and other advanced clinical applications, purchased textile manufacturer Concordia Medical LLC, a division of Concordia Manufacturing. Concordia Medical provides medical implant technology using biomaterials for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Both firms are located in Warwick, R.I.

Biomedical Structures has expertise in knitting, braiding, weaving and nonwoven technology. The company uses implantable-grade absorbable and non-absorbable biomaterials in orthopedic, general surgery tissue engineering, cardiovascular, bariatric, cosmetic surgery, and veterinary applications, including implantable devices and drug-delivery technologies. With the addition of Concordia Medical’s textile expertise and volume manufacturing capabilities, Biomedical Structures is targeting “rapid growth” in the fields of orthopedics and regenerative medicine.

According to a 2009 report, the total market potential for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine products is projected to exceed $118 billion by 2013.

Biomedical Structures received an investment from Ampersand Ventures in 2010 with plans to pursue a growth strategy that included equipment and facility investment, expanded engineering capabilities, and product R&D to broaden its reach into core markets.At present, the combined company has 50 employees.

“Since our capital investment in mid 2010, we have committed to increasing our capacity for highly precise and customized manufacturing,” said Biomedical Structures CEO and President John Gray.“With the acquisition of Concordia Medical, not only are we improving our biomedical textile engineering expertise and medical device market penetration, but we are increasing our manufacturing capacity to deliver on complex, sophisticated device applications at the volume our customers require.The company is a terrific complement to our advanced scientific expertise in medical textiles and will help bring our production capabilities to the next level.”

Concordia Manufacturing will retain an ownership stake in Biomedical Structures, and Randal Spencer, the CEO and president of Concordia, Biomedical’s board and continue to assist the business development of the combined operation.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.