Surgical Innovations moves to the cutting edge of innovation

FROM the outside, the non-descript building gives little away of the exciting work being carried out within its walls.

And when you step into the lobby of the 1960s building, home to Alternative Investment Market-listed Surgical Innovations, the decor does nothing to suggest this is anything but a normal office block.

But looks can be deceiving as managing director Graham Bowland is quick to emphasise.

The firm, which designs and manufactures devices for use in laparoscopic surgery (operations in the abdominal area), is proud of its ideas but also secretive of designs still in the formative phase, as is emphasised when I am asked to sign a confidentiality agreement about its latest project.

All that can be said on that is that Surgical Innovations is well on with work to develop a single incision device, which the company hopes will eradicate the need to make more than one cut in the abdomen when carrying out a procedure, which is presently standard practice.

Mr Bowland is understandably excited about the prospects for the product, prototypes of which are to be showcased at an upcoming major conference for surgeons which is taking place in Glasgow.

He describes the device as “next generation” and says surgeons are crying out for the device.

Other products Surgical Innovations is keen to push are LogiFlex – a device to help surgeons fit gastro bands to fight obesity – and its trademark YelloPort Plus system, a reusable device which helps access to the abdomen for operations.

He is also enthusiastic about the keyhole surgery specialist’s presence at the largest healthcare event in Latin America, Hospitalar 2009, at which Surgical Innovations will give potential customers a chance to learn about its instruments, which are patented and made up of re-usable and disposable elements – what the company describes as “resposable”.

For example a disposable instrument required for abdominal surgery can be attached to a set of re-usable handles (right), which look much like a pair of scissors.

Mr Bowland believes new markets, such as Brazil where the exhibition is taking place, will be better accessed thanks to the company’s move to one premises which in turn will lead to greater efficiency.

Previously Surgical Innovations’ staff were scattered around five buildings on the Leeds ring road in Horsforth.

But thanks to the move to one 32,000 sq ft building in the same area, a former printing company’s headquarters, the company’s talented team of designers and manufacturers are now able to work closer more closely and that is a benefit that cannot be underestimated according to Mr Bowland.

“It’s a phenomenal business we’ve got here,” says Mr Bowland, a chartered accountant who has become an expert in the surgical field he deals in thanks to countless hours in operating theatres getting feedback from surgeons using the company’s instruments.

“The surgeons can now look around and see the products being built and that goes down really well with them.”

In the company’s 24 hour factory area, large investment has been made in several hi-tech machines with more to come in the coming weeks.

A larger clean room is to be developed as the instruments need to be prepared for a surgical environment, while the design team’s office space is to be modernised and brought closer to the machinists. The timeframe this is completed by could depend on the result of a bid to Government for £750,000 of funding.

Although some products are still manufactured in Europe, Mr Bowland believes the centralised move will allow everything to be taken in house over time.

The advantages of the move are already being seen, with second half sales for the year to December 31 2008 growing by 48% compared to the first half of the year.

Pre-tax profits were up 12% to £820,000 on sales of £4.3m and with Mr Bowland keen to grow the company’s number of international distributors from the current 40 that figure could be set to grow further.

A dedicated sales and marketing team is next on the agenda as is taking advantage of Surgical Innovations’ Clinical Advisory Board, which is made up of a number of leading surgeons from across the globe who give advice on the company’s products so improvements can be made.

“The surgeons come up with the ideas,” says Mr Bowland. “They want the instruments to be different and we’re always looking at new ideas.”

And with Surgical Innovations’ continued work with Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) medical partners to create bespoke devices, the future looks bright for this deceptively innovative firm.