Theragenics Opens Manufacturing Plant in Costa Rica

Theragenics Corp., a medical device company serving the surgical products and prostate cancer treatment markets, is expanding in Latin America.

The Buford, Ga.-based firm has leased a manufacturing facility in San Jose, Costa Rica. The facility, located in Coyol Park, will  manufacture components used in the company’s vascular access product line. Theragenics Costa Rica Ltda., a wholly owned subsidiary of Theragenics, will operate the 17,200-square-foot facility, which is expected to be operational by the end of 2014.

Bernal Rodriguez has been hired as plant manager. Bernal brings more than 20 years of expertise in manufacturing and was most recently the plant manager of Microvention’s plant in San Jose, Costa Rica. The company expects to hire up to 50 new employees over the next several months as it ramps up operations.

“The opening of our facility in Costa Rica expands our footprint and provides us with manufacturing capabilities we did not previously have,” said Frank J. Tarallo, Theragenics CEO. “This will allow us to be closer to our vascular access customers. Costa Rica is a country that understands and supports the medical device industry, and our facility there will deliver the same quality, dedication and service that have been our foundation for years.”

Tarallo continued: “As we previously announced, we have refined our plans for moving certain portions of our Galt Medical operations offshore. These revisions result in maintaining a greater presence in the current Galt facility to better support our customers.”

Theragenics operates two business segments: surgical products and its brachytherapy seed business.

The surgical products business manufactures and distributes wound closure, vascular access, and specialty needle products. Wound closure products include sutures, needles and other surgical products. Vascular access includes introducers, guidewires and related products. Specialty needles include coaxial, biopsy, spinal and disposable veress needles, access trocars, radiofrequency devices, implanters, introducer products, and other needle-based products. The surgical products segment serves a number of markets and applications, including, among other areas, interventional cardiology, interventional radiology, vascular surgery, orthopedics, plastic surgery, dental surgery, urology, veterinary medicine, pain management, endoscopy and spinal surgery.

Theragenics’ brachytherapy business manufactures, custom loads, markets and distributes “seeds” used primarily in the minimally invasive treatment of localized prostate cancer.