Instrumentation Laboratory Moves To Direct Distribution Of Hemostasis Product Line In North America

BEDFORD, Mass., May 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Instrumentation Laboratory (IL) today announced that their Strategic Alliance Cross-Distribution agreement with Beckman Coulter (BCI) will terminate June 22, 2012, after more than twenty successful years.  Beginning June 23, 2012, IL will initiate direct sales, service, support and marketing to end-user customers in the U.S. and Canada, for their own Hemostasis product line, including the HemosIL® line of reagents, ACL TOP® Family of Hemostasis Testing Systems, ACL ELITE®/ELITE PRO analyzers and other ACL® systems. 

The transition will allow IL to apply the same direct business model employed in their Critical Care business, for over fifty years, to their Hemostasis product line.  Closer proximity to the customer means IL can quickly respond to changing needs, continuously improve the quality of their products and services, expedite innovation to Hemostasis labs, and reduce complexity of operations.  R&D and Manufacturing for all of IL's Hemostasis analyzers and reagents, along with their world-class Hemostasis expertise, reside at their headquarters in Massachusetts and New York.

"IL has achieved significant growth in Hemostasis, culminating in the attainment of the number one market share position worldwide, thanks to our focus on quality and innovation," said Ramon Benet, CEO at IL.  "Now is the ideal time for us to apply our expertise, resources, and world-class service organization to working directly with our Hemostasis customers in North America, and focus on ensuring a smooth transition for our customers."  

Up to and including June 22, 2012, Hemostasis customers and customer organizations will continue to contact BCI directly for service, support and products.  IL Customer Service is available now, at 1-800-678-0710, option 2, or at [email protected] to address any questions.

"We have incredibly strong relationships with our customers in Critical Care testing, because our direct sales, service and support groups are second to none," said Brian Durkin, Vice President, Commercial Operations, North America at IL.  "I am certain that we will forge similar partnerships with our Hemostasis customers, providing them outstanding support, and an uninterrupted workflow in their laboratories during this transition."

IL will honor all customer contracts, including end-user and Group Purchasing Organization agreements.  All current pricing, terms and conditions will remain in effect through the term of any existing agreement.  

Today, IL is the number one manufacturer of instruments and reagents for the Hemostasis market worldwide.  Since the introduction of the first fully automated Hemostasis analyzer, the ACL® 810 in 1985, IL has continuously introduced innovative instruments and reagents to hospital and specialty labs, culminating in the release of the ACL TOP Family of Hemostasis Testing Systems.  This line of fully automated analyzers is the leading Hemostasis product line in the world.  The Company has strong, established relationships with key scientific and industry leaders in Hemostasis, and has always been the source of technical, scientific and field service expertise.   

About Instrumentation Laboratory (www.ilus.com), founded in 1959, is a worldwide developer, manufacturer and distributor of in vitro diagnostic instruments, related reagents and controls for use primarily in hospitals and independent clinical laboratories.  The company's product lines include Critical Care systems, Hemostasis systems and information management systems.  IL's GEM® product offerings, part of the Critical Care line, include the GEM Premier™ 4000 analyzer with Intelligent Quality Management (iQM®), GEM Premier 3500, GEMweb® Plus Custom Connectivity, and the GEM PCL Plus, a portable coagulation analyzer.  IL's Hemostasis portfolio includes the ACL TOP® Family of Hemostasis Testing Systems, fully automated, high-productivity analyzers, including the ACL TOP 700, ACL TOP 700 LAS, ACL TOP 700 CTS, and ACL TOP 500 CTS.  IL also offers the ACL ELITE®, other Hemostasis analyzers and the HemosIL® line of reagents.  IL is part of the Werfen Group, a privately held company based in Barcelona, Spain. IL is headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts.

The Instrumentation Laboratory logo, GEM, iQM, HemosIL, ACL, ACL TOP, ACL ELITE, ACL AcuStar and Premier are trademarks of Instrumentation Laboratory Company and/or one of its subsidiaries or parent companies, and may be registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office and in other jurisdictions.  All other product names, company names, marks, logos, and symbols are trademarks of their respective owners.

SOURCE Instrumentation Laboratory