Danvers' Medical Industry Leaders Abiomed Inc. Mark Business Milestone

Abiomed, Inc. a leading provider of breakthrough heart support technologies, located in Danvers, announced today they have reached a milestone in their 30 years in the industry: profitability. 

The company, located at 22 Cherry Hill Drive, has doubled its annual revenue in just over three years – growing from a $50 million to a $100+ million company.

The business launched in 1981, with a goal of creating the world’s first Total Artificial Heart. After years of research and studies, success was achieved when the first patient received the AbioCor, in 2001.

Since that time, CEO, Mike Minogue, joined the company nearly eight years ago, and acquired the Impella technology from Germany to institute a new platform – introducing the World’s Smallest Heart Pump. "A tiny pump, the size of a coffee stirrer, that could be inserted in the catheterization lab (no surgery required), quickly and non-invasively,” Aimee Maillett, representing Abiomed, explained. It can be used for patients that were suffering from a heart attack and  patients who needed an angioplasty to unblock their vessels – known as percutaneous coronary intervention.

After it was cleared by the FDA in 2008, the Impella is now in more than 500 hospitals, including all of the major Boston hospitals, and has treated over 5,000 patients in the United States.

And now, after 30 years in the industry, today Abiomed announced they have officially gained profitability.

"We are proud to report the best quarter in company history with $29.5 million and 40% growth, driven by our Impella heart pump product platform," said CEO Michael R. Minogue, of Hamilton.

"Today is a milestone event for us because we have all been working tirelessly," said Mailett. "Our field reps are literally saving patients lives by assisting physicians on Impella cases, our engineers are creating the ideas, our manufacturing and quality assurance folks are ensuring that every product is in impeccable condition when it leaves the building, etc."

And despite a tough market economy, Abiomed has been able to stay strong, growing the Impella line 40 percent from last year.

"Just at the beginning of last week, our stock price was nearly $11 as a result of the market crashing over the summer," said Mailett. "Our employees have persevered and executed despite these tough times because we all believe in the product and believe that it saves lives, which essentially, is the “secret sauce” of the company. That and the strategically planned execution of clinical data and training our employees has helped us achieve profitability in this tough economic time."