Applied Medical Resources Corp., which has 18 company-owned buildings in Orange County totaling about 1.5 million square feet, 14 of them in Rancho Santa Margarita, says it believes local device companies like it can make their products domestically while keeping costs under control.
Its latest facility improvements include installing 190,000 square feet worth of solar panels on the roofs of eight buildings.
Applied Medical develops a range of minimally invasive devices used in surgery, including the Alexis O C-Section Retractor, which provides hands-free retraction and the Voyant Intelligent Energy System, which measures changes in tissue to apply the optimal amount of energy for creation of a permanent fused seal.
“We do everything from product design to development to manufacturing in-house, and it is a natural fit also to generate our own power on-site as part of our vertically integrated business model,” said Acting Group President of Advanced Technologies Zoran Falkenstein.
The solar installation will generate almost 5 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually, enough to power more than 370 homes, or about 15% of the facility’s energy, according to a company press release.
Applied Medical has made other sustainable initiatives at its Orange County campus, such as using a fuel cell, a cogeneration system, a water chiller system and programs to reduce waste.
“We offset 40% of our electricity consumption by producing electricity from renewable energy sources,” said a company spokesperson.
Applied Medical ranked 43rd on the Business Journal’s list of OC’s largest private companies with 2016 sales of nearly $461 million and 2,553 local employees.
Fast Track
Mission Viejo-based biotechnology company Aeolus Pharmaceuticals Inc. has been granted a fast-track designation by the Food and Drug Administration for its lead compound, AEOL 10150, which is designed to prevent fatal respiratory failure in patients at risk for lung inflammation resulting from radiation poisoning. Fast-track status accelerates the drug approval process.
Aeolus is traded on the OTC Market and has an approximately $15 million market cap.
AEOL 10150 is in a first-phase clinical trial and is being developed under a $118 million, five-year contract with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “as a medical countermeasure against chemical and radiological weapons,” according to Aeolus’ website. Â
Its other compounds, AEOL 20415 and AEOL 11114, are being developed to treat cystic fibrosis and Parkinson’s disease, respectively.
Wellness
St. Joseph Hoag Health in Irvine celebrates June with eyes set on behavioral health, including mental wellness and addiction. This month, it held its fourth annual Orange County Shatterproof Challenge Rappel at the Newport Center to raise awareness of the opioid epidemic.
New York-based Shatterproof is a national nonprofit organization that works to reduce stigma associated with addiction. Sponsors include Irvine Company Office Properties and the health system.
Dr. Richard Afable, executive vice president of St. Joseph Health’s Southern California Region and president and chief executive of St. Joseph Hoag, and several St. Joseph Hoag executives, including Chief Operating Officer, regional acute services Lee Penrose, joined the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on June 14 to draw awareness to mental health programs available in Orange County.
St. Joseph Hoag is comprised of a network of seven hospitals throughout OC and the high desert.
Precision Medicine
Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach named Dr. Michael Demeure program director of precision medicine, a new program focused on tailoring cancer treatment options for each patient. He’ll lead strategy and development of the program, identify partners, develop a Hoag molecular tumor board, and assess software development.
Hoag Family Cancer Institute now utilizes genomic profiling, a system “previously only accessible at large academic medical centers,” according to a hospital press release, to find molecular abnormalities that create and sustain cancerous tumors.
Hoag also has a location in Irvine. It’s part of Irvine-based St. Joseph Hoag Health.
