UNION CITY, Calif.,
Oct. 1, 2014 /PRNewswire/
-- Abaxis, Inc. (NasdaqGS: ABAX), a medical products company
manufacturing point-of-care instruments and consumables for the
medical, research, and veterinary markets worldwide and providing
reference lab services to the veterinary and research markets in
the United States, announced today
it has entered into a definitive distribution agreement with
Patterson Veterinary Supply. Patterson will inventory, market and promote
the full line of Abaxis veterinary products throughout the United States. Patterson sales and marketing activities will
commence immediately.
Clint Severson, Abaxis President
and Chief Executive Officer commented, "We are delighted to welcome
Patterson to the Abaxis
distribution network and look forward to their contributions to our
business and their own. Patterson's commitment to promoting and
marketing only the Abaxis product line as a diagnostic solution
shows both their commitment to the partnership and the outstanding
value of our products and services."
Craig Tockman, DVM, Vice
President of Sales and Marketing of Abaxis, added, "The
relationship between the distributor representative and the
veterinarian is a vital component of the business of running a
veterinary practice. We believe distribution plays a vital role in
the purchasing decisions made by the veterinarian and we are
committed to our entire roster of distribution partners for the
long term. Patterson has a
fantastic reputation and we are pleased they will represent
Abaxis."
George Henriques, president of
Patterson Veterinary, commented, "We are excited by the access our
veterinarians will now have to Abaxis' state-of-the-art diagnostic
technology as we work toward our core mission of providing quality
veterinary care to our customers and peace of mind for pet owners.
We also see great potential benefit from the relationship between
two demonstrated leaders in veterinary diagnostics. We are
confident that this agreement will further the goals of both
companies to provide a comprehensive suite of diagnostic solutions
and technical support to the veterinary community."
About Abaxis
Abaxis develops, manufactures, markets
and sells portable blood analysis systems for use in any veterinary
or human patient-care setting to provide clinicians with rapid
blood constituent measurements. The system consists of a
compact, 5.1 kilogram (11.2 pounds), portable analyzer and a series
of single-use plastic discs, called reagent discs that contain all
the chemicals required to perform a panel of up to 13 tests on
veterinary patients and 14 tests on human patients. The
system can be operated with minimal training and performs multiple
routine tests on whole blood, serum or plasma samples. The
system provides test results in less than 12 minutes with the
precision and accuracy equivalent to a clinical laboratory
analyzer. The veterinary business also provides to the animal
health and research market a line of hematology instruments for
point-of-care complete blood counts (CBC), a specialty instrument
to screen for and detect clotting disorders and to measure equine
fibrinogen levels, a handheld instrument for the rapid assessment
of certain critical care tests and rapid point-of-care tests for
Heartworm infections, Parvovirus, Giardia, Ehrlichia and Lyme
disease. Abaxis, through its AVRL division, provides routine
laboratory testing as well as specialty testing for veterinarians
nationwide.
About Patterson Companies, Inc.
Patterson Companies, Inc. is a value-added distributor serving the
dental, companion-pet veterinarian and rehabilitation supply
markets.
Dental Market: As Patterson's largest business, Patterson Dental
provides a virtually complete range of consumable dental products,
equipment and software, turnkey digital solutions and value-added
services to dentists and dental laboratories throughout
North America.
Veterinary Market: Patterson Veterinary is a leading distributor
in the U.S. and U.K. of consumable veterinary supplies, equipment
and software, diagnostic products, vaccines and pharmaceuticals
predominantly to companion-pet veterinary clinics.
Rehabilitation Market: Patterson Medical is the world's leading
distributor of rehabilitation supplies and non-wheelchair assistive
patient products to the physical and occupational therapy markets.
The unit's global customer base includes hospitals, long-term care
facilities, clinics and dealers.
This press release includes statements that constitute
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the "Reform Act"),
including but not limited to statements related to Abaxis' cash
position, financial resources and potential for future growth,
market acceptance and penetration of new or planned product
offerings, and future recurring revenues and results of
operations. Abaxis claims the protection of the safe-harbor
for forward-looking statements contained in the Reform Act.
These forward-looking statements are often characterized by the
terms "may," "believes," "projects," "expects," "anticipates," or
words of similar import, and do not reflect historical facts.
Specific forward-looking statements contained in this press release
may be affected by risks and uncertainties, including, but not
limited to, those related to risks related to the transition of its
U.S. medical sales to Abbott, potential excess inventory levels and
inventory imbalances at the company's distributors, losses or
system failures with respect to Abaxis' facilities or manufacturing
operations, fluctuations in quarterly operating results, dependence
on sole suppliers, the market acceptance of Abaxis' products and
services, the continuing development of its products, required
United States Food and Drug Administration clearance and other
government approvals, risks associated with manufacturing and
distributing its products on a commercial scale free of defects,
risks related to the introduction of new instruments manufactured
by third parties, risks associated with competing in the human
diagnostic market, risks related to the protection of Abaxis'
intellectual property or claims of infringement of intellectual
property asserted by third parties and risks related to condition
of the United States
economy. Readers should also refer to the section entitled
"Risk Factors" in Abaxis' annual report on Form 10-K, recent
quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and Abaxis' other periodic reports
filed with the United States Securities and Exchange
Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the
date the statements were made. Abaxis does not undertake and
specifically disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking
statements.
SOURCE Abaxis, Inc.