IntriCon Corporation (NASDAQ: IIN), a designer,
developer, manufacturer and distributor of body-worn medical and
electronics devices, announced that its strategic partner,
Minneapolis-based Advanced Medical Electronics Corp. (AME), is
participating in two new research grants from the U.S.
Government.
The first, from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and
Bioengineering (NIBIB), supports development of an ultra-miniature,
body-worn technology platform for recording signals from skin
electrodes. This core capability can be applied to:
- electrocardiography (ECG),
measuring the heart’s electrical activity;
- electromyography (EMG), gauging
the electrical activity of skeletal muscles;
- electroencephalography (EEG),
measuring electrical activity in the brain; and
- skin impedance recording,
measuring electrical and temperature changes at the skin’s
surface.
In addition to further development of this core recording
platform, the grant will support testing and Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) submission.
“The funding that AME received will be used to further advance
and commercialize our ultra-low power PhysioLink™ wireless
technology platform,” said Mark S. Gorder, president and chief
executive officer of IntriCon. “This includes aggressive
development of the electronics and device enclosure that will
comprise our next-generation ambulatory ECG products, among other
body-worn monitoring applications.”
In addition to the NIBIB funding, AME also is a collaborator on
a grant from the National Institute on Disability and
Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR). This phase-one grant is for
additional research and feasibility testing for solid-state sensor
technology that will ultimately replace aging telecoil sensor
technology in hearing aids.
Said Gorder, “Ultimately, this funding will allow AME and
IntriCon to explore the possibility of creating hearing aid devices
that work better with personal electronics such as land-line and
mobile phones, iPods and other listening devices. Right now hearing
aid users have to orient their head or the device to achieve the
optimal signal—and that can be problematic at best. New technology
will eliminate that and also result in smaller overall
devices.”
Said Gary Havey, AME’s president, “We are very excited to
receive these grants to support the development of our
bio-telemetry technology. In addition to being a trusted partner,
IntriCon is a collaborator in both grants and has exclusive rights
to sell the technology into its core markets—which are in alignment
with the research we’re conducting.”
According to Gorder, the two new grants will provide IntriCon
access to approximately $900,000 of funded research and development
over the next two years. In collaboration with AME over the past
three years, IntriCon has received the benefits of grant funding
for 15 development programs.
IntriCon Addresses Recent Stock Price Volatility
Today, in response to ongoing shareholder inquiries, IntriCon
also stated that it is unaware of any developments concerning its
business operations that could account for recent volatility and
declines in the price of the company’s common shares.
Said Gorder, “While it’s typically not our practice to comment
on the company’s stock price and trading trends, the amount of
inquiries we’ve received from shareholders has made us aware of the
need to comment on the issue. It’s our opinion that the decline in
the price of our stock speaks to the volatility of the market, not
to the strength of our company and certainly not to any
developments regarding our business operations.
“As we said at the end of our second quarter, IntriCon is as
focused as ever on our strengths in the body-worn area. Uncertainty
surrounding the economy remains, but we believe the targeted
initiatives we’ve undertaken in the past year position us to
deliver long-term growth.”
In July, the company reported second quarter net sales of $14.9
million, an increase of 16.6 percent from net sales of $12.8
million for the prior-year period. Net income in the 2010
second-quarter was $269,000, or $0.05 per diluted share, versus a
net loss of $598,000, or $0.11 per diluted share, for the
prior-year period.
About IntriCon Corporation
Headquartered in Arden Hills, Minn., IntriCon Corporation
designs, develops and manufactures miniature and micro-miniature
body-worn medical and electronics products. The company is focused
on three key markets: medical, hearing health, and professional
audio and communications. IntriCon has facilities in the United
States, Asia and Europe. The company’s common stock trades under
the symbol “IIN” on the NASDAQ Stock Market. For more information
about IntriCon, visit www.intricon.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements made in this release and in IntriCon’s other public
filings and releases that are not historical facts or that include
forward-looking terminology such as “may”, “will”, “believe”,
“anticipate”, “expect”, “should”, “optimistic” or “continue” or the
negative thereof or other variations thereon are “forward-looking
statements” within the meaning of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements include, without
limitation, statements concerning prospects in the miniature
body-worn device arena, new products, strategic alliances, future
growth and expansion, market fundamentals, future financial
condition and performance, prospects and the positioning of
IntriCon to compete in chosen markets and the Company’s planned
investments in research and development. These forward-looking
statements may be affected by known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors that are beyond IntriCon’s control,
and may cause IntriCon’s actual results, performance or
achievements to differ materially from the results, performance and
achievements expressed or implied in the forward-looking
statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors include, without
limitation, risks related to the current economic crisis, the risk
that IntriCon may not be able to achieve its long-term strategy,
weakening demand for products of the company due to general
economic conditions, risks related to the company’s strategic
alliances and joint venture, possible non-performance of developing
the Centauri, Scenic, Overtus, wireless glucose monitor and
situational listening device products and other technological
products, the volume and timing of orders received by the company,
changes in the mix of products sold, competitive pricing pressures,
the cost and availability of electronic components and commodities
for the company’s products, ability to create and market products
in a timely manner, competition by competitors with more resources
than the company, foreign currency risks arising from the company’s
foreign operations, ability to satisfy and maintain compliance with
the covenants under the company’s loan facility, the costs and
risks associated with research and development investments,
volatility in the price of the Company’s common stock and other
risks detailed from time to time in the Company’s filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009. The company
disclaims any intent or obligation to publicly update or revise any
forward-looking statements, regardless of whether new information
becomes available, future developments occur or otherwise.
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