A Major Milestone for Miniature Motor Manufacturer
Life is about to turn golden for micro electrical drive system designer Micromo. The Clearwater, Fla.-based company is turning 50 this year, and executives plan to mark the milestone with an “employee celebration” during the second half of 2011.
“Micromo has grown dramatically over the past 50 years from a small distributor to a full service, value added technical center for the Faulhaber Group,” Dodd Disler, Micromo’s vice president and chief operating officer, said in a prepared statement. “Our mission remains true today. We start with the highest performing motion products from around the world.
Then we apply design, engineering, machining and assembly capabilities to customize products into complete solutions for specific applications. We deliver solutions with technical, logistics and customer support in our customers’ home territory. These benefits are critical for demanding markets such as medical, aerospace, and robotics.”
Founded in 1961, Micromo designs and manufactures small DC motors, DC servomotors, and brushless motors. The firm is a member of the Faulhaber Group, a global designer and manufacturer of complex, high-precision miniature and micro drive systems for the medical device, telecommunications, precision optics and handling automation industries. The technology used in both Micromo and Faulhaber products was invented nearly 60 years ago by Fritz Faulhaber, Ph.D., who developed an ironless bell-shaped rotor coil. The invention spawned a new industry sector that now produces millions of miniature “Faulhaber” motors, according to the company.
Micromo’s 73,000-square-foot campus in Florida features a clean room subassembly area, a CNC (computer numerical control) machine shop, a testing laboratory and an area for inventory.
Synergy Health Forms New Americas Division with BeamOne Acquisition
Synergy Health plc has acquired BeamOne LLC; BeamOne will become the company’s Americas Regional Division. Former President and CEO of BeamOne, Glenn Thibault, will become CEO of Synergy’s Americas Division. BeamOne’s current executive and management groups will not be changed.
“Our acceptance of Synergy Health’s purchase offer was predicated to a large extent upon our shared business philosophies,” Thibault said in a news release. “BeamOne and Synergy are both solidly committed to providing customer service and product processing quality.”
Richard M. Steeves, Ph.D., group chief executive of Synergy Health, agreed. “BeamOne has a track record as an industry leader in e-beam sterilization services with a cultural and technological match to our own corporate philosophy,” he said.
Both Steeves and Thibault claimed the merger could help Synergy increase its market share in the sterilization/decontamination sector.
“BeamOne’s expertise in electron beam processing, coupled with Synergy’s know-how with all three major sterilization modalities, will vault the joined companies into the position of being the worldwide provider of sterilization and decontamination services,” Thibault noted.
And, as such a provider, Synergy could very well enter new markets.
“The blending of these two highly focused businesses will provide tremendous benefits to healthcare and medical device manufacturing industries,” Steeves concluded. “The combined team will allow us to expand our technological capabilities in the electron beam sectors of other markets.”
BeamOne has facilities in San Diego, Calif., Denver, Colo., Lima, Ohio and Saxonburg, Pa., as well as Costa Rica.
Synergy Health is headquartered in Swindon, United Kingdom, and specializes in medical decontamination, infection control, hospital linen services and laboratory sectors. The company owns 20 sterilization-related businesses throughout Europe, Asia and Africa.
2011 Becoming Year of Expansion for Ellsworth
Ellsworth Adhesives’ global presence notably has expanded over the first few months of the year. In that time, the company has launched a new website in Mexico, moved to a larger facility in Spain, and most recently, launched a new subsidiary Down Under.
Ellsworth Adhesives Australia Pty Ltd., based in Melbourne, Australia, provides technical support and customer service to clients in both Australia and New Zealand. Executives have appointed Kevin Tarrant as sales manager.
“Ellsworth’s expansion into Australia and New Zealand comes at an opportune time as Ellsworth continues to concentrate on international sales and business growth objectives,” said Mike McCourt, global president of Ellsworth Adhesives Specialty Chemical Distribution.
In February, the company announced that Ellsworth Adhesives Iberica had moved to a larger facility in Madrid, Spain. According to executives, the move illustrates the key role of the European market in the firm’s long-term growth strategy.
“We established our presence in Europe in 2001 and recognize the importance of expanding our European market penetration as a key objective to our international growth strategy,” said John Henderson, managing director, Ellsworth Adhesives Europe. “We are pleased to be moving to a larger premise to better serve our customer base and business in Spain and Portugal.”
Ellsworth Adhesives Iberica will provide Spanish and Portuguese customers with local technical support, stocking and more delivery options.
“Ellsworth has used our global network, local knowledge and expertise to provide international adhesive and specialty chemical services to our customers,” McCourt said in a news release. “Our engineering experts are well versed in the local manufacturing environment.”
The company marked another global achievement in February with Fisnar Inc.’s (part of Ellsworth Adhesives since 2008) 25th anniversary celebration. The Wayne, N.J.-based company manufactures automatic liquid dispensers and dispensing equipment on a global scale.
“Fisnar’s strength lies in its people and a determination to be a major influence in international dispensing equipment decisions,” said James Dornan, Fisnar’s managing director of global operations. “We quickly realized that if Fisnar were to be involved in supplying an international market, we had to be on location. This strategy has been responsible for the Fisnar brand being instantly recognized for quality of product and customer service throughout the world.”
Ellsworth further cemented its global footprint with the launch of a new website in Mexico,
www.ellsworth.com.mx. The website, which premiered in January, offers more than 3,000 product SKUs, and allows visitors to interact with more than 50 manufacturers for pricing.
“The site provides our customers with an easy, convenient and functional way to search for products and obtain competitive quotes,” noted Sergio Ramirez, national sales manager, Mexico, for Ellsworth Adhesives S. de R.L. de C.V.
Ellsworth Adhesives also maintains websites in the U.S., Canada, United Kingdom, Sweden, Finland and China.
“This latest site is a very important one for us,” said Jeff Payne, Ph.D., chief marketing officer for Ellsworth Corporation. “We have a long history in Mexico, and this site should be a very useful information source for our customers in this country.”
Fisnar joined the Ellsworth group of companies in 2008. The Germantown, Wis.-based Ellsworth Corporation brands itself as one of the world’s largest distributors of specialty chemicals. Its adhesives distributor (aptly named Ellsworth Adhesives) supplies manufacturers with adhesives, sealants, conformal coatings, encapsulants, specialty chemicals and ultraviolet curing equipment as well as dispensing products, equipment and accessories.
Telemis Acquires Micromedica, Expands Presence in Italy
Telemis has acquired Micromedica Ltd., further expanding its footprint in Italy. According to terms of the deal, Micromedica becomes part of the Telemis Group and Micromedica Managing Director Gian Paolo Robutti becomes general manager in Italy.
Imaging and multimedia storage and communication solutions for nuclear medicine, radiotherapy and other departments in hospitals, clinics and private practices will help Telemis expand its portfolio beyond radiology, Robutti claimed.
The company opened Telemis Italia SRL in 2009 to substantiate growth from its European Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) and MuItimedica Archiving and Communication System (MACS) markets. The acquisition of the Turin, Italy-based firm is expected to significantly strengthen sales and technical support capabilities for Italian customers.
“Alongside innovative technologies and increased OEM sales, a key pillar of the Telemis growth strategy is geographic expansion,” Stephane Ketelaer, CEO, said. “The acquisition of Micromedica is in line with that strategy and will help Telemis to become one of Italy’s most significant PACS and MACS players.”
“Through the acquisition, customers in Italy will benefit from a combination of improved access to the Telemis product and service portfolio and the sales and support capabilities of Micromedica,” Ketelaer continued.
Indeed, the Micromedica purchase will bring Telemis some of Northern Italy’s largest public hospitals as customers.
“Micromedica has built a position as a strong PACS vendor in Northern Italy,” Robutti said. “The agreement with Telemis is great news for existing Micromedica customers, as it will ensure access to all of the resources and support they need to address their future needs.”
Sparta Systems Strikes Deal with Synertec Asia
Sparta Systems, Inc. has partnered with Synertec Asia Pte Ltd. Synertec will provide an established, regional presence for the life sciences markets in Southeast Asia, and provide full support of all Sparta Systems’ Trackwise quality management software applications.
Synerterc, a select channel partner in the Asia Pacific region, will give users greater access to technical support from locally based experts.
“Our partnership with Sparta Systems demonstrates Synertec’s commitment to meeting the needs of our customers by establishing local technical expertise for deployment and support of TrackWise products,” Nick Kotlarski, general manager at Synertec Asia, said. “We are excited to provide Sparta Systems’ global management platform to better assure safe products from our global manufacturers.”
Critz Chan, managing director at Sparta Systems Asia, said the partnership will help extend the reach of Trackwise software.
“As the life sciences sector has matured in Southeast Asia, Sparta Systems has sought ways to bring greater value to its customers and greater TrackWise product availability to prospects,” Chan noted.“Synertec has provided specialist life science engineering support for more than 15 years and is a recognized leader in best-in-class information management systems and key value-added services. Partnering with Synertec will help extend the power of TrackWise software throughout Southeast Asia and beyond.”
Synertec Asia is a specialty consulting practice that provides a range of engineering, validation and GMP-compliance service to medical device manufacturers. The company has offices in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Sparta Systems is focused on global quality management needs. The TrackWise software application is used to manage quality and compliance issues throughout a project’s life cycle. Sparta System’s Asia office is in Hong Kong; the firm is headquartered in Holmdel, N.J.
Plans for Steris’ New Structures Move Ahead
Steris Corporation is putting the finishing touches on a new $11 million, 55,000-square foot customer solutions center in Mentor, Ohio. When it opens in early summer, the center will provide a place for potential customers to view models of hybrid operating rooms for hospitals and surgical centers. STERIS manufactures all the equipment and some of the sterilization products used in the rooms, which can accommodate surgical and imaging procedures simultaneously.
The company also plans to open a medical mart in nearby Cleveland, Ohio, which eventually will provide customers an integrated experience. After discussing project-specific details at the solutions center, clients then can go to the medical mart to see complementary products from other vendors.
Steris expects to fill 100 positions in customer service, engineering and regulatory affairs at the center. Approximately 100 people from the company’s Erie, Pa., location are expected to move or commute to the facility by the end of the year.
When the project was announced last year, executives said the solutions center would “not only transform the Mentor campus, it will transform the overall experience for our customers of doing business with Steris.”
One of the ways Steris is hoping to transform customers’ overall experience is by helping them transition to the company’s new System 1E sterilization device. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given customers an additional six months to transition from the firm’s recalled System 1 product, requiring them to make the change to an alternative processing system by Feb. 2, 2012.
Steris, however, has begun shipping System 1E, the replacement for System 1. Seventeen months ago, the FDA reported that System 1, a liquid chemical sterilizing system used by hospitals, surgical centers, and other healthcare facilities, had changed significantly since its 1988 launch and was no longer approved for sale. A federal safety alert stating that the device could be harmful to patients was issued on Dec. 3, 2009.
While System 1 could be used to sterilize both heat sensitive and non-heat sensitive devices, System 1E is used for heat sensitive devices only, such as endoscopes made with materials or adhesives that degrade when heated. System 1E can process between 70 and 80 percent of the devices that System 1 processed.
System 1E received regulatory clearance for sale in April 2010, but Steris did not immediately ship the product because it was waiting for FDA approval of two accessory parts: a chemical indicator and a biologic indicator. The company, though, was not required to obtain approval
for those parts.
The FDA has approved the chemical indicator only. Nevertheless, Steris has begun shipping System 1E.
“We’ve heard from our customers that they want us to start shipping units as soon as possible,” company spokesperson Steve Norton said.
Shipments of System 1E had no significant material effect on third-quarter financial results. Steris is currently in discussions with the FDA about clearance for the biologic indicator.
Anomatic Increases Capacity at Connecticut Location
Anomatic Corporation is expanding its Naugatuck, Conn., production facility, reinvesting $1.2 million to build a tool and die shop and increase its metal stamping capacity.
“Reducing lead times. Increasing speed to market and improving on-time delivery are critical drivers to customer satisfaction,” said Scott L. Rusch, Anomatic’s president. “This new addition of presses at our Connecticut facility will not only allow us to increase our overall production, but also allow us to meet our clients’ needs more quickly and efficiently, making the Connecticut facility our center of excellence for metal stamping and tool building.”
Anomatic produces anodized aluminum packaging for the pharmaceutical, medical, cosmetic and health and beauty industries. In 2010, it anodized more than 950 components, a 20 percent increase compared with 2009. Headquartered in Newark, Ohio, the company operates an additional facility in Suzhou, China.
Working Days are Numbered for Sandvik Employees
Sandvik Medical Solutions is trimming its workforce in Memphis, Tenn.
The company, according to published reports, is laying off 55 people between April 30 and August. The cuts will impact more than half the firm’s workforce in Tennessee—the firm employs a total of 92 people there.
Sandvik has operated in the Memphis area since 2008, when it acquired Medtronic Inc.’s Spinal and Biologics’ specialty instrument manufacturing operation in suburban Bartlett, Tenn. The company issued statements at the time saying it was establishing a North American medical technology headquarters. Since the acquisition, however, Sandvik’s employment steadily has declined—in 2009, the company employed 143 people and the number fell to 110 in last year, according to MBJ research.
Sandvik was enticed to Memphis area partly by the tax breaks it received from both the city and Shelby County in 2008. The firm also received a seven-year PILOT (payment in lieu of tax), which saved the firm more than $800,000 in annual taxes (under terms of the PILOT, Sandvik reportedly promised that it would employ 110 workers in Memphis and create an additional 45 positions that paid an average of $53,000 annually).
Sandvik Medical Soultions is a division of Sandvik Materials Technology, an engineering group that focuses on tooling, materials technology, mining and contruction. Sandvik Materials Technology is headquartered in Sweden.