NEW YORK, June 20, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Founded in the early 1980s, the Vista, CA-based DJ Orthopedics (NYSE:DJO) focuses on the orthopedic rehabilitation segment of the sports medicine market. Initially focused on the retail aspect of the sports medicine market, a strong R&D effort shifted their efforts to developing products geared toward rehabilitation, Cross told www.wallst.net.
"A large and fragmented" $1 billion per-year market, he said his company has "the leading franchise in the orthopedics rehabilitation market." Cross discussed what he called a drifting away from a "performance improvement" phase that concentrated on "cost cutting and efficiency," in the interview. The company is currently focused on accelerating the growth of the company attending to the improvement of the productivity of their U.S. sales force, and by having "a continuous sale of new products," Cross said.
Cross told wallst.net that industry growth is consistent, adding that "the outlook (for his company) is strong. The good news is that we're all going to live longer. The bad news is that in order to live longer, we've got to remain active." With the inevitable wear and tear on joints, and imminent resulting injuries, Cross said the "demographics and growth opportunity in our market is an exciting one."
The fastest growing sectors in the orthopedics market are that of treating Osteoarthritis, and post surgical pain management. Designing products to help arthritis patients, and to assist physicians with monitoring patients during the first 72-hours after surgery, both markets are "fast-growing segments," for DJ Orthopedics, Cross said.
Within the U.S., DJ Orthopedics has a sales network of approximately 270 representatives, who act independently to solicit orders on the company's behalf. Outside the United States, the company has its own facilities in Canada, the UK and Germany.
Cross discussed the rise in his company's revenues and price-per-share in the interview, and attributed the recent profitability to the company's improvement performance plan. "We continue to have cash in the bank," he said. "We've been very pleased with our performance."
With what Cross called "fragmented competition," DJ Orthopedics remains at the forefront of its industry, he said. "We're three to four times the size of our competitors." Ranking first in knee bracing, with 40% of the market share, and first in fracture boots with 30 per cent of the market share, Cross added that the company's "focus is on accelerating the top-line growth, which demonstrated significant growth in the company over the last year."
To hear the entire interview, visit www.wallst.net
About DJ Orthopedics
DJ Orthopedics, Inc. is a global orthopedic sports medicine company specializing in the design, manufacture and marketing of surgical and non-surgical products and services that repair, regenerate and rehabilitate soft tissue and bone, help protect against injury, and treat osteoarthritis of the knee.
About WallSt.net
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