Innovative Charleston Company is Acquired by Swiss Multinational
January 14, 2011CHARLESTON, SC – January 7, 2011 – Sabal Medical, Inc., a privately held company whose technologies are helping hospitals deliver medications to their patients more safely and efficiently, announced today that it has been acquired by Swisslog, a global provider of integrated logistics solutions for hospitals, warehouses and distribution centers.
By acquiring Sabal, Swisslog strengthens its market position as a leading provider of a complete suite of systems and services that optimizes the total medication management supply chain in hospitals. Sabal’s main product, a mobile drug cabinet, will become an integral component of Swisslog’s Automated Drug Management Systems (ADMS) product portfolio. The purchase price for Sabal Medical Inc. amounts to $9,000,000.
“As hospitals look for solutions that increase the level of patient care while improving the efficiency of the supply chain, Swisslog is excellently positioned to meet this need,” notes Remo Brunschwiler, CEO of Swisslog. “Our ADMS business has been an area of continuous growth. The acquisition of Sabal Medical is an important step forward in reaching our goal of becoming a leader in drug management solutions within the acute care hospital segment.”
Swisslog’s other drug management products include PillPick, BoxPicker, ATP High-Speed Packager, Pick-to-Light Shelving, and Inventory Management Software. Collectively, these pharmacy automation solutions streamline and optimize the operations of both in-patient and outpatient hospital pharmacies. From the packaging of bulk medications to storage and dispensing, Swisslog’s products help hospitals reduce or eliminate medication errors while improving the speed and efficiency of the drug supply chain.
Sabal Medical’s mobile drug cabinet is lighter, more maneuvrable and stores more drugs than any COW (computer-on-wheels) on the market. It is designed to reduce the medication retrieval and delivery burden of nurses.
“All day, everyday nurses are required to obtain medications and supplies from multiple locations throughout a hospital,” Charlie Kegley, President of Swisslog Healthcare Solutions North America, explains. “Studies have shown that all this walking adds up to an average of six miles per day of wasted time and distractions, lessening the amount of personal care patients receive. Nurse interruptions are well-known contributors to medical errors. Our new product reduces those
interruptions while providing a mobile, secure, and audited platform for medication administration.”
Sabal, based in Daniel Island, was founded by Bill Park, CEO, and David Duranceau, CIO, in 2006. The Company relocated from Seattle, WA to the Charleston area with an initial “landing party” investment from SC Launch! in 2007 that allowed the company to complete its commercial prototype. The following year, Sabal received backing from an international investment syndicate led by Nexus Medical Partners (using equity capital from South Carolina’s Venture Capital Investment Act), and Medicis Capital GmbH (Munich).
Gregory Zaic, a Nexus general partner comments, Nexus is very pleased to have enabled Sabal to complete its product development and successfully enter the market place. This transaction places a major multinational company’s capital, expertise and marketing resources behind a local company’s successful innovation. It represents an excellent example of Nexus’ strategy of backing local innovative companies, attracting outside capital and supporting global expansion, in this case through acquisition by a multinational company. We are confident that Sabal is in good hands with Swisslog, an excellent company.
“This is a very exciting time for South Carolina, the Charleston area, and especially those of us here at Sabal, says Bill Park, CEO of Sabal. Our solutions align very well with Swisslog’s product portfolio and will help Swisslog achieve its goal of providing seamless integration from the pharmacy to the point of use. The team at Sabal is very excited about joining such a great company, said Park.
About Swisslog
Swisslog is a global provider of integrated logistics solutions for warehouses, distribution centers and hospitals. Its comprehensive services portfolio ranges from building complex warehouses and distribution centers to implementing Swisslog’s own software and technology to intra-company logistics solutions for hospitals.
Swisslog’s solutions optimize customers’ production, logistics and distribution processes in order to increase flexibility, responsiveness and quality of service while minimizing logistics costs. With years of experience in the development and implementation of integrated logistics solutions, Swisslog provides the expertise that customers in more than 50 countries around the world rely on.
Headquartered in Buchs/Aarau, Switzerland, Swisslog currently employs over 2 000 staff in 20 countries worldwide. The group’s parent company, Swisslog Holding AG, is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (security number: 1232462, Telekurs: SLOG, Reuters: SLOG.S). Swisslog refers to an order as “major order” if its financial volume exceeds the threshold of MCHF 20.