Norland rebounds and sells bone system

New York-based Norland Medical Systems, a bone densitometry vendor, appears to have rebounded from the dramatic fourth quarter and year-end losses of 1998. In 1999, the company’s revenue increased by 24%. Revenue for year-end 1999 was $17.8 million, compared with $14.4 million in 1998.

Norland’s net loss for the fourth quarter of 1999 was $791,000, compared to $4.3 million in the fourth quarter of 1998. CEO Reynald G. Bonmati attributes the firm’s recent success to cutting losses and positioning the company as a broader medical device vendor.

The company develops, manufactures, sells, and services a wide range of systems used to assess bone mineral content and density, the measurements used by physicians to diagnose and monitor bone disorders such as osteoporosis.

At the same time Norland announced positive news about its financial performance, company officials said they have started selling McCue’s CubaClinical, an ultrasound bone measurement system. In January, Norland received premarket approval from the Food and Drug Administration for this system (SCAN 2/2/00). The company obtained exclusive distribution rights for the product from McCue last June.

In March, Norland began marketing the McCue system to physicians across the U.S. The company is already distributing the system in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and the Pacific Rim.