Mass High Tech - Device maker taps into aging market

May 15, 2006 —

Item Group of Providence, R.I., has created a subsidiary dubbed Ximedica to focus on the design and development of new medical devices.

 

Ximedica officials say they will be involved in the device-creation process from the initial design to supply of finished goods.

 

Chief Executive Robert Pelletier said the company has about 35 employees, and initial projects include mechanical and electronics design as well as hardware and software implementation. He said the company will likely grow to 50 people within the year.

 

The company will translate the ideas of customers initially, and at some point perhaps come up with its own plans to make devices, he said.

 

"There is a big future in medical devices, and the Item Group wanted to create an independent team to take advantage of this climate," said Pelletier. "We have an aging population in this country that wants to continue to be active and healthy, and the field is growing. We see a demand for devices."

 

Item Group was founded in 1985 by Stephen Lane and Aidan Petrie, who still manage the company.

 

Company officials say they are developing an 81,000-square-foot "innovation center" in Providence that will host the activities of both Item Group and Ximedica, in part to meet Food and Drug Administration standards for certification.

 

"Item Group has been a very innovative company," said Saul Kaplan, acting director of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corp. "They are taking advantage of the fact that this area has a great history of design and devices."

 

Ximedica officials say they have a dozen clients.

 

Because Item Group has offices in Hong Kong, Ximedica will offer the option of manufacturing overseas.

 

Pelletier, hired in 2005, had been senior vice president of operations for ACMI Corp., the Southborough device maker.

 

Before ACMI, he served in executive posts with Teleflex Corp., and Genzyme CT Devices and Genzyme Biosurgery.

 

Industry analysts say the medical device market is more than $200 billion per year and is expected to grow at a rate of 8 percent to 10 percent per year.