Date: May 13, 2013 Author: Nick Budnick Source: oregonlive.com (
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The Portland company HemCon Medical Technologies, known for its surgical bandages, has been acquired for $3 million by a Connecticut-based firm.
TriStar Wellness Solutions, Inc. says it will retain HemCon as a subsidiary, and has no plans to lay off its roughly 30 U.S. employees.
The HemCon purchase is intended to help TriStart increase its share of the $17 billion global wound care market, the company said in an announcement.
HemCon, which had revenues in 2012 of $6.5 million, was founded in 2001 and benefited from early U.S. government support to develop a bandage that would help stop uncontrolled bleeding.
The bandage was treated with chitosan, a substance developed from shrimp. However, in 2006 Marine Polymer Technologies of Massachusetts sued HemCon claiming patent infringement. Marine Polymer had patented chitosan derived from algae.
Last year, a federal appellate court ruled against HemCon, affirming a $34 million verdict and leading the Portland firm to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The firm was auctioned off in court proceedings, with TriStar submitting the winning bid.
Before the verdict, the company employed about 120. It has branched out into dental dressings and nasal plugs, among other products.
Barry Starkman, HemCon's President and CEO, will retain those titles while becoming a TriStar senior vice president. He says he took the job after the company filed for bankruptcy, because "I really believe the products, both existing and in development, have a great future."
