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Business Profile

                    LAKE REGION MEDICAL



                    An INTEGER Company






                    It’s been an impressive 23 years   world’s first pacemakers,”   to ensure the company sticks to
                    for the Lake Region Medical   Director of Operations for Lake   that upwardly-mobile trend graph.
                    devices plant in New Ross     Region, an Integer Company,
                    in County Wexford which       Eddie Kiely, explains today. Since   In 2012 Lake Region Medical
                    was initially set up with a   those early days, it’s been success   New Ross became the first
                    workforce of 15 people but has   after success for the company.    medical device manufacturer in
                    grown to now employ almost                                  Europe to be awarded a global
                    900 staff.                    The acquisition of Lake Region   standard in Enterprise Excellence,
                                                  Medical by Greatbatch Medical   the prestigious Shingo
                    Both in Wexford and abroad,   Inc.  in late 2015, led to the   Accreditation Bronze Medallion.
                    the company is much different   creation of Integer Holdings   Meanwhile, also in 2012, the
                    today to when it was founded   Corp. Integer is now one of the   company was honoured by the
                    internationally in 1946 and in   largest medical device outsource   Irish Medical Device Association
                    Wexford, when it was set up to   (MDO) manufacturers in     as “Ireland’s  MedTech Company
                    service the European market in   the world serving the cardiac,   of the Year”.  So what exactly do
                    1994.                         neuromodulation, orthopaedics,   they do in that state-of-the-art
                                                  vascular, advanced surgical and   plant on the western side of Co
                    Starting life in post-war America,   portable medical markets.   Wexford?
                    the business was founded by
                    Joseph Fleischhacker Snr to   The New Ross plant is now one   “We manufacture medical guide
                    manufacture lures and fishing   of 27 manufacturing sites across   wires which provide a point of
                    tackle. “About 10 years later, he   America, Europe and Asia. The   access to a patient’s coronary and
                    was approached by the owners   County Wexford plant is a great   peripheral vascular system to
                    of Medtronic to develop and   source of pride to management   allow physicians conduct a range
                    manufacture pacing leads for the   and staff alike growing as it has   of diagnostic and therapeutic
                                                  since 1994 to become one of the   medical procedures, for example,
                                                  key employers in the southeast   inserting other devices like
                                                  of Ireland. “Over recent years   catheters and stents,” Eddie
      ‘‘     Wexford is very                        Eddie points out. Integer,   the products designed and
                                                                                says. This may sound simple
                                                  the plant has gradually grown to
                                                                                but such devices save lives and
                                                  a workforce of 880 associates,”
                                                      New Ross, can now be
                                                                                manufactured by this innovative
                                                       described as “a very diverse
                                                                                company are now a vital tool
                                                                                for cardiologists and surgeons
                                                         company, employing
             much a pro-business
                                                           people of 18 different
                                                                                worldwide. “It has been estimated
             environment with
                                                                                somewhere in the world every
                                                              all of whom
             excellent relationships                         nationalities,”    that an Integer guidewire is used
                                                                                1.5 seconds,” as the Director of
                                                                combine their
                                                                  expertise and
                                                                                Operations puts it.
             with local and national                               experience    An impressive track record and

             authorities, educational and                                       one that hasn’t been developed
                                                                                without a constant commitment
             training organisations             ’’                              to excellence, innovation and
                                                                                customer service. At the moment,
             Eddie Kiely, Director of Operations,  Lake Region Medical,         the New Ross site ship products
             an Integer Company.                                                to customers in more than 30



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