Aliso Viejo-based OrthAlign Inc. believes it’s positioned for growth with a new management team in place and fresh capital.
It raised $10 million in series D financing this month to expand product offerings and support commercial expansion.
“The right way to put it is that we are … bringing in more resources, more capital and more headcounts to move faster in becoming a portfolio player [that] provides a complete [joint] replacement surgery platform,” said Chief Executive Erik Timko.
The medical device maker, founded in 2008, develops a single-use, palm-sized precision alignment device designed to help orthopedic surgeons in knee and hip replacement surgeries. It manufactures and distributes Food and Drug Administration-approved KneeAlign for total knee replacement surgeries, and UniAlign for partial knee replacement.
Timko said the company plans to offer five products in the market by the end of next year. OrthAlign, which employs about 59, plans to hire 12 to 15 workers with engineering or marketing capabilities over the coming month. It recently hired 19 employees.
The recent financing round was led by existing investors River Cities Capital Funds in Cincinnati, Ohio, California Technology Ventures in Pasadena, Research Corporation Technologies in Tucson, Ariz., and Mutual Capital Partners in Westlake, Ohio.
OrthAlign has raised $41.37 million, including the series D.
Management
Timko was named chief executive and chairman of the board in March, replacing William Maya. He assumed the role after serving on the board since July 2016.
He previously served as president and chief executive at Blue Belt Technologies in Pittsburgh, which makes the robot-assisted portable Navio system used in knee replacement surgeries. The company was acquired last year by British medical equipment manufacturer Smith & Nephew for $275 million.
Other recent management team changes include the appointment of Mike Bushlack as chief financial officer and the promotion of James Kim to vice president and general manager of international sales and marketing.
International Growth
The FDA has approved four of the five products OrthAlign plans to have on the market by next year, two knee devices and two hip products, the latter of which have been only partially commercialized. It hopes to get FDA approval for a total knee replacement gap balancing product by the middle of next year.
“Going into 2018, our field team will have a full arsenal of products [to sell] versus just one knee product,” Timko said, adding that revenue should double when all five products are fully launched.
The company plans to grow internationally. Its primary markets are Japan and Australia. Timko said it’s developing its India market, which has major potential for the company.
