Following the completed merger between Zimmer Holdings Inc. and Biomet Inc., Smith & Nephew plc announced an agreement to acquire the Zimmer Unicompartmental High Flex Knee (ZUK) system in the U.S. market. The knee replacement system was introduced globally in 2004. Smith & Nephew has purchased all existing inventory and certain intellectual property for the U.S. market. The sale was part of the U.S. Trade Commission's (FTC) conditions for approval of the deal.
The transaction will close within three business days after the merger between the Warsaw, ind.-based companies has closed.
"Our acquisition of this product line expands our access to a fast growing segment of the joint reconstruction market," said Brad Cannon, president of Smith & Nephew's global orthopedic franchises. "We look forward to welcoming many new customers to Smith & Nephew and are excited by this opportunity to demonstrate first-hand our excellent customer service and broad range of advanced surgical products."
Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
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Smith & Nephew is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom. It's U.S. orthopedic operations are based in Memphis, Tenn.