Our healthcare activities date back to 1895, after (Royal) Philips bought CHF Muller of Hamburg, which manufactured the first commercial X-ray tube, and 1918, when it first introduced a medical X-ray tube.
By 1933, we were manufacturing medical X-ray equipment in Europe and the United States.
What followed was a healthcare vision and a string of key acquisitions.
Hefty investments
Between 2000 and 2003, Philips doubled the size and scope of our Medical Systems business through approximately EUR 5 billion in acquisitions to position the company as a global player in this market.
Philips acquired ATL Ultrasound (1998), ADAC Laboratories (Nov. 2000), Agilent Technologies Healthcare Solutions Group (Nov. 2000), Marconi Medical Systems (October 2001). And that was just a start.
Active in key areas
Philips has been able to expand its professional business and aggressively pursue opportunities in the key North American market—which now accounts for approximately 50 percent of the division’s sales—as well as emerging markets (Europe and Africa: 29 percent, Asia: 17 percent, Latin America: 4 percent).
Philips has also been able to round out our diagnostic imaging business with patient monitoring, resuscitation, patient information management, and most recently, consumer healthcare and wellness products.
More acquisitions
The following acquisitions have continued to strengthen our Philips’ healthcare portfolio:
- August 2005 – Philips completed an acquisition of Stentor Inc. to strengthen its position as a primary supplier of technology to the healthcare information technology (IT) market. As a result of this acquisition, Philips now ranks globally as the number two supplier of picture archiving and communications systems (PACS).
- April 2006 – Philips completed the acquisition of Witt Biomedical Corporation, the largest independent supplier of hemodynamic monitoring and clinical reporting systems used in cardiology catheterization laboratories (cath labs). This acquisition makes Philips the leading provider of integrated cath lab solutions.
- November 2006 – Philips completed the acquisition of Intermagnetics General Corporation, a manufacturer of superconducting magnets used in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems, and a provider of specialized MRI-compatible radio frequency (RF) coils. This acquisition strengthens Philips’ position in the global MRI market by extending its product portfolio and accelerating time-to-market of MR systems.
- June 2007 – Philips completed the acquisition of VMI-Sistemas Medicos (VMI), the leading X-ray manufacturer in Brazil. By acquiring VMI, Philips can offer customers in Brazil and across Latin America a more complete diagnostic imaging product portfolio, endorsing the company’s global strategy of focusing on healthcare and investing in emerging markets.
- August 2007 – Philips acquired XIMIS Inc., a provider of a next generation radiology information system (RIS) that helps to reduce errors and streamline workflow for radiology facilities. The acquisition enables Philips to offer an integrated RIS-PACS solution that can address both workflow management as well as image management and distribution.
- December 2007 – Philips acquired Emergin. Emergin’s alarm management and event notification software helps ensure that critical information is sent rapidly to the right caregiver on the personal communication device of their choice – be it a pager, wireless telephone, PDA or LED sign. The addition of Emergin strengthens Philips’ clinical IT portfolio and will expand the use of information technology in healthcare—specifically in its patient monitoring business—to improve patient outcomes and help hospitals work more efficiently.
- February 2008 – Philips acquired VISICU Inc., a provider of clinical IT systems that enable critical care medical staff to actively monitor patients in hospital intensive care units (ICUs) from remote locations. By integrating VISICU’s remote patient monitoring and clinical decision support technology with Philips’ patient monitors, Philips can offer products that provide more effective clinical decision support to hospital staff, while allowing them to monitor far greater numbers of critically ill patients.
- March 2008 – Philips acquired Northern Ireland-based TOMCAT Systems Ltd., a company that offers a software solution to collect and aggregate data relative to the cardiac care of patients, and allows for a comprehensive, patient-centric presentation of this data to caregivers such as doctors and nurses.