Philips: EPD R&D staff will stay in Israel

Philips HQ, photo: Reuters
Philips HQ, photo: Reuters

Philips has told "Globes" that Caesarea based EPD, which it acquired for up to $530 million including milestone payments, will remain in Israel.

Following the acquisition of Israeli cardiac imaging company EPD Solutions by Philips, which was announced yesterday, the Dutch-based technology giant has told "Globes" that the Caesarea-based company's R&D staff will remain in Israel as part of Philips. Earlier this week, Philips announced that it is buying EPD for $292 million and a further potential $238 million in milestone payments.

In answer to questions from "Globes" Philips said, "The minimally invasive treatment sector led by guided imaging is one of Philips's most significant growth areas."

"EPD has 30 employees, of which 20 are in Israel in the field of R&D. This team will join Philips and stay in Israel and become part of our imaging team, which is managed from the Netherlands. There will be no integration of the operations with other companies in Israel."

Philips added, "In recent years, we have strengthened and expanded this field, which is led by Bert van Meurs, through an internal R&D program and acquisitions. In the past year, we have presented Philips Azurion to the world, our next generation platform in the field of interventional radiology, and we have acquired Volcano (a US company in which Israeli venture capital fund Accelmed was a leading investor and is engaged in imaging the interior of blood vessels), and Spectranetics, a company which has developed systems to treat artery disease and remove it through devices implanted near the heart."

"The acquisition of EPD will add further capabilities in this field: smart catheters, navigation software and treatment and service software in fibrillation treatment, a market worth $2 billion. The integration of Azurion and EPD's navigation imaging systems will provide all the required information to lead catheters to the place for treatment and heart rhythm disorders."

"The uniqueness of the product is the detailed 3D image of the heart, which is received during the ablation treatment."

The product competes with the products of Biosense Webster, which Prof. Shlomo Ben-Haim sold to Johnson & Johnson and still employs hundreds of people in Haifa

"The market for burning tissues for heart treatment has grown enormously over the past decade. We believe that we can offer an exceptional solution to this market, which Biosense does not have even though it is operating in it."

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 7, 2018

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2018

Philips HQ, photo: Reuters
Philips HQ, photo: Reuters
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