Surgical Innovations Group plc

("Surgical Innovations", "SI" or the "Company")

5-year USA distribution agreement

Distribution agreement signed with Microline Surgical Inc for YelloPort+Plus^TM and YelloPort Elite^TM

Surgical Innovations Group plc (AIM: SUN), the designer, manufacturer and distributor of innovative medical technology for minimally invasive surgery ("MIS"), announces a new USA distribution agreement with Microline Surgical Inc. ("Microline") for the Company's range of YelloPort+Plus^TM and YelloPort Elite^TM Access Devices. The 5-year agreement brings a significant opportunity to SI for growth in the US Trocar market. 

Microline's sales & marketing structure is ideally placed to leverage their experience with Resposable surgical instruments to effectively drive US sales of YelloPort+Plus^TM  and YelloPort Elite^TM Access Devices.

Based near Boston, MA, U.S.A. Microline designs, manufactures and distributes high quality instruments aimed at the MIS market.  Its portfolio of products is complementary to those offered by SI with a focus on the resposable ethos of cost and sustainability. SI has a long established relationship with Microline, where it has an exclusive GB distribution agreement for Microline instruments that are complementary to the SI branded range.

Timothy Gehlmann, President & CEO of Microline, noted: "Microline is excited to add the YelloPort line of trocars from SI to our product portfolio.  The SI trocar line complements our MIS instrument line by broadening our solution offering to customers."

Adam Power, Group Development Director at SI, added: "The United States accounts for almost half of the worldwide trocar market. Microline has a direct sales team with considerable experience in the selling of Resposable surgical devices. Microline and Surgical Innovations, through its UK subsidiary Elemental Healthcare, share a long history of synergy and growth and we are very excited to replicate this successful relationship in the United States."

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About Surgical Innovations Group plc

The Group specialises in the design, manufacture, sale and distribution of innovative, high quality medical products, primarily for use in minimally invasive surgery. Our product and business development is guided and supported by a key group of nationally and internationally renowned surgeons across the spectrum of minimally invasive surgical activity.

We design and manufacture and source our branded port access systems, surgical instruments and retraction devices which are sold directly in the UK home market through our subsidiary, Elemental Healthcare, and exported widely through a global network of trusted distribution partners. Many of our products in this field are based on a "resposable" concept, in which the products are part re-usable, part disposable, offering a high quality and environmentally responsible solution at a cost that is competitive against fully disposable alternatives.

Elemental also has exclusive UK distribution for a select group of specialist products employed in laparoscopy, bariatric and metabolic surgery, hernia repair and breast reconstruction.

In addition, we design and develop medical devices for carefully selected OEM partners, and have also collaborated with a major UK industrial partner to provide precision engineering solutions to complex problems outside the medical arena.

We aim for our brands to be recognised and respected by healthcare professionals in all major geographical markets in which we operate and provide by development, partnership or acquisition a broad portfolio of cost effective, procedure specific surgical instruments and implantable devices that offer reliable solutions to genuine clinical needs in the operating theatre environment.

The Group currently employs approximately 100 people across two sites in the UK. Product design, engineering and manufacturing are carried out at the SI site in Yorkshire. Commercial activities including marketing, UK distribution and international sales and marketing are based at Elemental Healthcare in Berkshire.

Further information

Further details of the Group's businesses and products are available on the following websites:

www sigroupplc com  
www surginno com
www elementalhealthcare co.uk

To receive regular updates by email, please contact si@walbrookpr.com.