05.19.10
Executives have plucked Joseph Slattery from the company’s board of directors to serve as executive vice president and chief financial officer. His appointment is the third in four months among top-level managers at the Wilmington, N.C.-based firm.
Slattery replaces Michael Luetkemeyer, who left the company March 31 to “pursue other opportunities,” according to a news release. Slattery, 45, re-signed from the board to become the company’s CFO. He had been chairman of the firm’s audit committee, joining the board in late 2007.
Besides his knowledge of TranS1, Slattery brings experience to his new position: He had the same job at Digene Corp. before it was sold in August 2007 to Qiagen NV, a Venlo, Netherlands-based molecular diagnostics manufacturer. The combined company now uses the Qiagen name and bases its U.S. operations in Gaithersburg, Md.
Before assuming the CFO role at Digene, Slattery served as senior vice president, finance and information systems. He also serves on the board of directors of Micromet Inc., a Bethesda, Md.-headquartered firm that researches and develops antibody-based therapeutics; and CVRx Inc., a Minneapolis, Minn.-based company that has developed implantable technology for the treatment of high blood pressure and heart failure.
Slattery’s appointment caps three and a half months of management changes at TranS1. In early January, company officials announced the appointment of Ken Reali as president and chief operating officer. Reali arrived at TranS1 with more than 20 years of general management, sales and marketing experience with medical device and orthopedic firms. He joined the company from Smith & Nephew, where he most recently served as senior vice president and general manager of the company’s Biologics and Spine business. Before he was hired by Smith & Nephew, Reali worked for Stryker Corp. and Biomet Inc.
Reali’s appointment was followed by the hiring of Dwayne Montgomery in mid-March as vice president of sales. Montgomery’s background is similar to Reali’s, having worked in sales, general management and marketing positions with medical device and orthopedic firms for nearly 20 years. He joined TranS1 from ConMed Livatec, where he served most recently as vice president of sales. Before he was hired by ConMed, Montgomery worked for Smith & Nephew and Guidant Corp., a division of Boston Scientific Corp. that designs and makes artificial pacemakers, implantable defibrillators, stents and other cardiovascular medical products. Boston Scientific acquired Guidant for $27.2 billion in 2006.
TranS1 specializes in devices that treat degenerative disc disease and ailments affecting the lower lumbar region of the spine. It has lost $71 million since its inception nearly 10 years ago.
Custom Spine Inc. is beefing up its research and development department.
Executives at the Parsippany, N.J.-based designer and developer of spinal implants and instruments named David Brumfield senior vice president of research and development. Brumfield has 31 years of experience developing orthopedic and spinal medical devices, according to the company. He also holds 33 U.S. patents.
Brumfield began his career in 1979 at Memphis, Tenn.-based Richards Manufacturing Company. He stayed there 12 years, assuming positions of increasing responsibility as the fledgling firm morphed into Smith & Nephew. Custom Spine officials credit Brumfield with making “significant contributions” to various orthopedic trauma products including cephalomedullary nails, which are used to repair femoral factures.
In 1991, Brumfield joined Danek Medical and ultimately was named vice president of product development as the company became Medtronic Sofamor Danek. In 1993, Danek Medical acquired Sofamor; six years later the company merged with Medtronic in a $3.6 billion deal.
During his 15-year tenure with Danek Medical, Brumfield pioneered the use of titanium in spinal implants and minimally invasive surgical instruments, Custom Spine executives said in a news release.
Brumfield returned to his roots in 2006, rejoining Smith & Nephew to lead research and development for its trauma division. Over the last four years he has helped the company develop new treatment options, including an electromagnetic method for distal targeting of intramedullary nails and biomaterial technologies for healing difficult fractures.
Brumfield believes his research and development experience as well as his role in evaluating new designs and technologies will help him match surgeon and patient needs with technical solutions for Custom Spine.
MAKO Surgical Corp. is bolstering its senior management team.
Executives at the Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based company have appointed Richard Leparmentier to the newly created position of senior vice president of engineering, where he will oversee MAKO’s research and development department. The firm’s R&D activities used to be managed by company co-founder and current chief visionary officer Rony Abovitz.
MAKO officials also appointed James E. Keller to the newly created position of senior vice president of regulatory affairs and quality assurance. He, along with Leparmentier and Abovitz, report to Maurice R. Ferre, M.D., MAKO’s president and CEO.
From 2007 until his appointment at MAKO, Leparmentier served as U.S. vice president of design and engineering for ASML, a Dutch lithography equipment company. He gained his business experience at GE Healthcare from 1995 to 2006. At GE, Leparmentier was vice president of OEC-Surgery Engineering, engineering manager in China, and lead System designer for radiographic products in Buc, France.
Keller has overseen the regulatory affairs and quality assurance departments of at least five medical device and pharmaceutical companies over the course of his career.
From 2008 to 2009, Keller served as vice president of regulatory affairs and pharmacovigilence for Medicis Pharmaceutical Corp., a mid-cap diversified drug and Class III medical device company based in Scottsdale, Ariz. Before that, he was vice president of regulatory affairs and quality assurance for F. Dohmen, a healthcare services firm in Milwaukee, Wis.
Keller spent two years as vice president of clinical, spinal and biologics for the orthopedic and biologics division of Medtronic Inc., and four years as vice president of regulatory affairs and quality assurance for Light Sciences Corporation, an early stage biotechnology development firm in Bellevue, Wash.
From 1996 to 2000, Keller worked as vice president of regulatory affairs for Mallinckrodt, a medical device and pharmaceutical company based in Hazelwood, Mo. The firm was acquired by Tyco International Ltd. in 2000 for $4.2 billion in stock. Mallinckrodt became part of Covidien after the firm (formerly called Tyco Healthcare) separated from its parent company, Tyco International.
Keller began his career at E.I. du Pont de Nemours in 1987, holding various positions including associate director of regulatory affairs with DuPont MerckPharmaceutical Company and manager of regulatory affairs, quality assurance and government affairs for DuPont Medical Device Materials.
MAKO manufactures and sells a robotic-arm interactive orthopedic system and implants for minimally invasive orthopedic knee procedures. The system is a surgeon-interactive tactile surgical platform that incorporates a robotic arm and patient-specific visualization technology and prepares the knee joint for the insertion and alignment of its resurfacing implants through a minimal incision.
Slattery replaces Michael Luetkemeyer, who left the company March 31 to “pursue other opportunities,” according to a news release. Slattery, 45, re-signed from the board to become the company’s CFO. He had been chairman of the firm’s audit committee, joining the board in late 2007.
Besides his knowledge of TranS1, Slattery brings experience to his new position: He had the same job at Digene Corp. before it was sold in August 2007 to Qiagen NV, a Venlo, Netherlands-based molecular diagnostics manufacturer. The combined company now uses the Qiagen name and bases its U.S. operations in Gaithersburg, Md.
Before assuming the CFO role at Digene, Slattery served as senior vice president, finance and information systems. He also serves on the board of directors of Micromet Inc., a Bethesda, Md.-headquartered firm that researches and develops antibody-based therapeutics; and CVRx Inc., a Minneapolis, Minn.-based company that has developed implantable technology for the treatment of high blood pressure and heart failure.
Slattery’s appointment caps three and a half months of management changes at TranS1. In early January, company officials announced the appointment of Ken Reali as president and chief operating officer. Reali arrived at TranS1 with more than 20 years of general management, sales and marketing experience with medical device and orthopedic firms. He joined the company from Smith & Nephew, where he most recently served as senior vice president and general manager of the company’s Biologics and Spine business. Before he was hired by Smith & Nephew, Reali worked for Stryker Corp. and Biomet Inc.
Reali’s appointment was followed by the hiring of Dwayne Montgomery in mid-March as vice president of sales. Montgomery’s background is similar to Reali’s, having worked in sales, general management and marketing positions with medical device and orthopedic firms for nearly 20 years. He joined TranS1 from ConMed Livatec, where he served most recently as vice president of sales. Before he was hired by ConMed, Montgomery worked for Smith & Nephew and Guidant Corp., a division of Boston Scientific Corp. that designs and makes artificial pacemakers, implantable defibrillators, stents and other cardiovascular medical products. Boston Scientific acquired Guidant for $27.2 billion in 2006.
TranS1 specializes in devices that treat degenerative disc disease and ailments affecting the lower lumbar region of the spine. It has lost $71 million since its inception nearly 10 years ago.
New Executive Appointed at Custom Spine
Custom Spine Inc. is beefing up its research and development department.
Executives at the Parsippany, N.J.-based designer and developer of spinal implants and instruments named David Brumfield senior vice president of research and development. Brumfield has 31 years of experience developing orthopedic and spinal medical devices, according to the company. He also holds 33 U.S. patents.
Brumfield began his career in 1979 at Memphis, Tenn.-based Richards Manufacturing Company. He stayed there 12 years, assuming positions of increasing responsibility as the fledgling firm morphed into Smith & Nephew. Custom Spine officials credit Brumfield with making “significant contributions” to various orthopedic trauma products including cephalomedullary nails, which are used to repair femoral factures.
In 1991, Brumfield joined Danek Medical and ultimately was named vice president of product development as the company became Medtronic Sofamor Danek. In 1993, Danek Medical acquired Sofamor; six years later the company merged with Medtronic in a $3.6 billion deal.
During his 15-year tenure with Danek Medical, Brumfield pioneered the use of titanium in spinal implants and minimally invasive surgical instruments, Custom Spine executives said in a news release.
Brumfield returned to his roots in 2006, rejoining Smith & Nephew to lead research and development for its trauma division. Over the last four years he has helped the company develop new treatment options, including an electromagnetic method for distal targeting of intramedullary nails and biomaterial technologies for healing difficult fractures.
Brumfield believes his research and development experience as well as his role in evaluating new designs and technologies will help him match surgeon and patient needs with technical solutions for Custom Spine.
MAKO Surgical Creates Two New Senior Management Jobs
MAKO Surgical Corp. is bolstering its senior management team.
Executives at the Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based company have appointed Richard Leparmentier to the newly created position of senior vice president of engineering, where he will oversee MAKO’s research and development department. The firm’s R&D activities used to be managed by company co-founder and current chief visionary officer Rony Abovitz.
MAKO officials also appointed James E. Keller to the newly created position of senior vice president of regulatory affairs and quality assurance. He, along with Leparmentier and Abovitz, report to Maurice R. Ferre, M.D., MAKO’s president and CEO.
From 2007 until his appointment at MAKO, Leparmentier served as U.S. vice president of design and engineering for ASML, a Dutch lithography equipment company. He gained his business experience at GE Healthcare from 1995 to 2006. At GE, Leparmentier was vice president of OEC-Surgery Engineering, engineering manager in China, and lead System designer for radiographic products in Buc, France.
Keller has overseen the regulatory affairs and quality assurance departments of at least five medical device and pharmaceutical companies over the course of his career.
From 2008 to 2009, Keller served as vice president of regulatory affairs and pharmacovigilence for Medicis Pharmaceutical Corp., a mid-cap diversified drug and Class III medical device company based in Scottsdale, Ariz. Before that, he was vice president of regulatory affairs and quality assurance for F. Dohmen, a healthcare services firm in Milwaukee, Wis.
Keller spent two years as vice president of clinical, spinal and biologics for the orthopedic and biologics division of Medtronic Inc., and four years as vice president of regulatory affairs and quality assurance for Light Sciences Corporation, an early stage biotechnology development firm in Bellevue, Wash.
From 1996 to 2000, Keller worked as vice president of regulatory affairs for Mallinckrodt, a medical device and pharmaceutical company based in Hazelwood, Mo. The firm was acquired by Tyco International Ltd. in 2000 for $4.2 billion in stock. Mallinckrodt became part of Covidien after the firm (formerly called Tyco Healthcare) separated from its parent company, Tyco International.
Keller began his career at E.I. du Pont de Nemours in 1987, holding various positions including associate director of regulatory affairs with DuPont MerckPharmaceutical Company and manager of regulatory affairs, quality assurance and government affairs for DuPont Medical Device Materials.
MAKO manufactures and sells a robotic-arm interactive orthopedic system and implants for minimally invasive orthopedic knee procedures. The system is a surgeon-interactive tactile surgical platform that incorporates a robotic arm and patient-specific visualization technology and prepares the knee joint for the insertion and alignment of its resurfacing implants through a minimal incision.