Össur

--Beverlina (talk) 01:08, 10 May 2008 (UTC)

Ossur (Iceland Stock Exchange: OSSR) is a non-invasive orthopaedics company and a global leader in the development, manufacturing, distribution, sales, and marketing of bracing and support products, compression therapy, and prosthetics. The company’s headquarters are in Reykjavik, Iceland. The company also has extensive operations in the Americas, Europe, and Asia, with numerous distributors in other markets. In 2006, Ossur Asia opened its latest outpost in Shanghai, China.

Ossur’s business is focused on improving people's mobility and describes its mission as striving to give patients “a life without limitations.”

The company’s innovate technologies have garnered attention from The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fortune, TIME Magazine, Wired, PBS, CNN, CBS, ABC, and the BBC, among other major media outlets.

History

Ossur was founded in Iceland in 1971 by Össur Kristinsson, a prosthetist. The Kristinsson family owned the company until 1999, when it went public and was listed on the Icelandic stock exchange. Initially, the company served only the domestic Icelandic market, and then began to export in l986. The 1990s saw rapid expansion and the 2000s an assertive acquisition strategy. Ossur has now grown from being a prosthetics workshop with a few employees to a progressive high-tech company that employs a staff of around 1,600 in 14 locations around the world.

Acquistions

Since 2000, Ossur has acquired 13 companies. All except for the Gibaud Group are fully integrated.

• 2000 – Flex-Foot, Inc.
• 2000 – PI Medical AB.
• 2000 – Karlsson & Bergstrom AB.
• 2000 – Century XXII Innovations, Inc
• 2003 – Linea Orthopedics AB.
• 2003 – Generation II Group, Inc.
• 2005 – Advanced Prosthetic Components
• 2005 – Royce Medical, Inc.
• 2005 – Innovative Medical Products, Ltd.
• 2005 – GBM Medical AB.
• 2006 – Innovation Sports, Inc.
• 2006 – Gibaud Group
• 2007 – SOMAS

An Overview

Ossur (logo)

Type Public (Nasdaq/OMX: OSSR)
Headquarters Reykjavik, Iceland

Jon Sigurdsson, President and CEO

Key People
Arni Alvar Arason, VP Ossur Asia
Egill Jonsson, VP of Manufacturing and Operations
Eythor Bender, President of Ossur Americas
Hilmar Bragi Janusson, VP of R&D
Hjorleifur Palsson, CFO
Olafur Gylfason, Managing Director of Ossur EMEA

Research & Development

Ossur operates five R&D departments, which are located in four countries and employ a total of 76 people. In-house R&D also partners with third parties, including universities and research companies. Ossur invests significantly in research and product development. In 2007, that investment amounted to 6 percent of the company’s total sales. The same year, 22 US patents were granted to Ossur and 37 new applications filed. At the end of the year, Ossur had 218 US, 26 European, and 103 granted international patents in its portfolio, together with 119 US and 239 pending applications world.

Ossur is recognized by the World Economic Forum as a "Technology Pioneer," which means it has been identified as a company that is developing and applying the most innovative and transformational technologies.

Produkte

Ossur operates in three markets: bracing & support, compression therapy, and prosthetics. Ossur’s Bionic Technology Platform is a part of the prosthetics market.

Bracing & Support

Ossur offers a diverse range of braces and support products for arms, legs, and torso. Among its notable products are:

UNLOADER® ONE, a brace that provides a mechanical solution to knee pain caused by osteoarthritis. It separates bones when ligaments and cartilage are damaged and also prevents further damage to the joint.
CTi® , a ligament brace for knees used for both rehabilitation and for injury prevention.
Philadelphia Tracheotomy and Miami J Cervical Collars. In a three year Mayo Clinic study published in 2007, Ossur’s collars were found to be the most restrictive of those tested, and consequently also reduced the incidence of pressure ulcers.

Compression Therapy

Ossur entered the compression therapy segment with the acquisition of the French company, Gibaud. Products include:

Prosthetics

Ossur’s products represent a complete, modern prosthetics line. They manufacture prosthetic limbs and joints, liners, sockets, locks and sleeves. Some of its best-selling products are:

Flex-Foot®, a high performance foot made from 100% carbon fiber, a material used extensively in the aerospace industry for its superior strength and flexibility. The Cheetah® Flex-Foot worn by Oscar Pistorius and other amputee athletes is a derivative of this product line.
Total Knee®, unique in that it has a "locking moment", which keeps the knee from collapsing when it is in full extension.
Mauch® Knee that has a hydraulic system for fluid, natural gait and offers a high level of flexibility for more active lifestyles.
Iceross® Silicone prosthetic liners, which provide the interface between the skin and the socket, forming the basis of comfort and performance.

Bionic Technology Platform

This platform focuses on restoring the anatomical function displaced by amputation by using intelligent structures in products that can respond in a human-like way. Its award-winning products are:

RHEO KNEE®, the world’s first microprocessor swing and stance knee system to utilize the power of artificial intelligence.
POWER KNEE™, that works as an integrated extension of its user, synchronizing motion with that of the sound leg using motor power.
PROPRIO FOOT®, the world’s first intelligent and motor-powered foot module.

Awards & Accolades

2004 – RHEO KNEE® featured in TIME Magazine’s "Coolest Inventions of 2004"
2004 – RHEO KNEE® included in Fortune magazine’s "25 Best Products of 2004"
2004 – Ossur named “One of the smartest companies in the world” by Business 2.0 magazine
2005 – Ossur's POWER KNEE™ wins Popular Science magazine’s "Best of What's New" Award in the Personal Health category
2005 – For the fourth time, Ossur places high on the list of Europe's fastest growing companies, according to Europe's 500 Entrepreneurs for Growth Index, supported by Microsoft and KPMG
2005 – Hugh Herr, director of the Biomechatronics Group at The MIT Media Lab, and co-inventor of Ossur's RHEO KNEE®, receives Popular Mechanics magazine’s highest recognition, the Breakthrough Leadership Award
2005 – RHEO KNEE® wins the Frost & Sullivan Technology of the Year Award
2005 – Ossur's Bionic line wins the Medical Marketing Association’s Gold International Award for best branding/corporate identity of the year
2005 – RHEO KNEE® listed in Technology Review magazine’s "Top 10 Emerging Trends"
2006 – PROPRIO FOOT® wins Popular Science magazine’s “Best of “What's New" Award in the Personal Health category. (Ossur’s second consecutive win.)
2006 – Ossur receives Frost & Sullivan 2006 Technology Innovation of the Year Award for Bionic Technology by Ossur product platform which includes the RHEO KNEE®, POWER KNEE™ and PROPRIO FOOT®. (Ossur’s second consecutive win.)
2006 – Ossur wins Investor Relations Award
2006 – Ossur poster series and bionic packaging each win Medical Marketing Association's 2006 Bronze International Award.
2006 – Ossur selected as a 2006 Technology Pioneer by the World Economic Forum, and participated in the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
2006 – For the fifth time, Ossur places high on the list of Europe's fastest growing companies.
2007 – PROPRIO FOOT® awarded with a Unique Innovation Award at the ninth international ORPROTEC tradeshow in Valencia, Spain
2007 – RHEO KNEE® wins named as one of the six top products recognized by the Czech Ministry of Health
2007 – PROPRIO FOOT® wins the Da Vinci Award
2007 – PROPRIO FOOT® wins Medical Design Excellence Award
2007 – Ossur‘s Vice President of Research & Development, Dr. Hilmar Janusson, named by BusinessWeek as one of the “Top Ten Cutting Edge Designers” of the Year
2007 – PROPRIO FOOT® nominated for the Icelandic Visual Arts Award for its exceptional design
2007 – Ossur wins Investor Relations Award
2008 - Inventor of Ossur‘s Flex-Foot®, Van Philips, nominated for the European Patent Office‘s European Inventor of the Year Award

Team Ossur

Team Ossur comprises elite international athletes and sporting role models, along with gifted performers and professionals from around the world who use Ossur prosthetics. Under this program, Ossur is a major sponsor of disabled athletes, many of whom are Paralympic medalists and world record holders in their sports. Some of the most notable are:

Oscar Pistorius, the South African double-amputee who has made headlines by challenging the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) to allow him to compete against able-bodied athletes in the Olympics. He is the world record holder in his category for the 100, 200 and 400 meters sprints. TIME Magazine has named him one of the 2008’s “100 Most Influential People.”

Marlon Shirley, who lost one foot, is the fastest amputee in the world and also jumps farther than any other amputee. He is a four-time world champion, two-time Paralympic gold medalist and multiple world record holder.

Sarah Reinertsen, the first amputee to be featured on the cover of Runner magazine, and the first woman with one leg to finish the Hawaiian Ironman Triathlon. She has also completed multiple marathons and was a contestant on The Amazing Race television show.

Brian Frasure, is a veteran of disabled athletics, who has been breaking records since 1996 and has medaled in two Paralympics. He is now a certified prosthetist and mentor to Oscar Pistorius.

Rudy Garcia-Tolson is a double-amputee who has broken world swimming records. He’s been featured in People magazines “20 teens who will change the world” and has appeared on Oprah.

Mike McNaughton, who lost his leg to a land mine in Afghanistan. Awarded a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart, he was featured in the press when he ran on the White House Grounds with President Bush on his prosthetic leg.

External Links

[Ossur http://www.ossur.com]
[Bionic Technology by Ossur http://www.ossur.com/bionictechnology]
[The Official World Economic Forum Site http://www.weforum.org/]