Drive Medical 'solidifies' respiratory offerings

PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y. - Drive Medical's acquisition of Medquip in July is another notch in the company's belt in the respiratory product category.

When Drive Medical acquired Inovo/Chad Therapeutics in 2011, company officials said they were looking to make more acquisitions in the category. Where Inovo brought to the table oxygen conservers and regulators, Medquip brings nebulizers and disposable respiratory products.

“You have the asthma population that needs nebulizers, but also the COPD population, and as their disease progresses, they may need oxygen,” said Mitch Yoel, executive vice president of Drive Medical. “We have the ability to match products to patients based on their changing needs.”

Drive Medical's next move in the respiratory product category: to introduce a 5-liter stationary concentrator, called the Pure Concentrator, and a transfilling device, called the Pure Fill. The products, which are currently being beta tested, will be on display at Medtrade in October.

Drive Medical was already a player in the nebulizer market, but Medquip, best know for its Airial line of pediatric nebulizers, “solidifies” the company's position, Yoel says.

Medquip also brings new products with retail opportunities, such as digital blood pressure monitors, to Drive Medical's line-up, he says.

Drive Medical has already moved Medquip's inventory to its Atlanta distribution center, Yoel says.

For Bluffton, S.C.-based Medquip, being part of Drive Medical means having more to offer its customers, says Craig Bright, who owns Medquip and will become senior vice president of business development, respiratory products, for Drive Medical.

“It was going to be challenging in the future to be a niche player,” he said. “We've been lucky to have great success, but with the changes in the market, we were concerned we didn't have the breadth of products. In a market going through a lot of changes, there are always winners and losers, and we feel that Drive is a winner.”

Those changes in the market, namely competitive bidding and audits, will drive continued consolidation among HME manufacturers, Yoel says. Just days after announcing the Medquip acquisition, Drive Medical announced that it acquired Dupont Medical, a manufacturer and distributor of a range of healthcare products in France.

“We've had quite a few acquisitions and you're going to see quite a bit more,” he said.