This is the third year that the SwedenBIO award is given to prominent companies and leaders in the Life-Science industry. The jury's motivation:
The winner of the SwedenBIO Award 2009 is CellaVision, which develops and sells analyzers for automated image analysis of cells and cell changes to hospitals and laboratories in Europe and North America. CellaVision's instruments make these important analytical processes simpler, faster, and better, resulting in improved patient safety and efficiency. CellaVision is awarded the prize for its combination of innovative strength in an important field, endurance, customer-focused marketing, and good business conduct. During 2008 these characteristics resulted in CellaVision's best year to date with a record increase in sales by 35 percent to over SEK 100 million. CellaVision is aiming at penetrating the potentially large Japanese market now that the American market has started gaining momentum.
"2008 was a fantastic year for us as we continued working with focus on establishing CellaVision as the globally leading company in hematological image analysis," says Yvonne Mårtensson, CEO of CellaVision. "It is a great honor for us to receive this prize, especially with regard to the other amazing companies that were short-listed. We are proud and honored, and view the prize as an important asset when looking for partners and for improving our visibility on the stock market."
In 2008 CellaVision presented its best sales and results in the history of the company. For the first time sales increased to over SEK 100 million while the operating result increased to SEK 13 million. Amongst other events during the year CellaVision established its own sales organization in the USA, the subsidiary CellaVision Japan K.K. was launched, and the range of products was widened with an application for body fluids. The company continued to show positive results during the first part of 2009, and in July a new analyzer will be launched. As of now, more than 500 analyzers have been sold to approximately the same number of customers, which are both hospital and commercial laboratories in mainly Europe and North America.
The SwedenBIO Award is an annual prize awarded to companies in the Life-Science industry. The prize winner is a company that during the past year has made an exceptional contribution to research or business, and shows role-model characteristics. This year, five companies were nominated: Bactiguard, Biotage, Biovitrum, CellaVision and Phadia.
For more information, please contact:
Yvonne Mårtensson, CEO, CellaVision AB
Phone: +46 708 33 77 82. E-mail: yvonne.martensson@cellavision.com
About SwedenBIO
About CellaVision
CellaVision AB develops, markets, and sells market leading image analysis based systems for routine analysis of blood and other body fluids. The company has a core competence in development of software and hardware for automatic image analysis of cells and cell changes for applications in health and medical care. The company develops and markets systems for automatic differentials of white blood cells and red morphology, and software for education and quality assurance of differentials. The company's associates have expertise in advanced imaging analysis, artificial intelligence, and automated microscopy.
The company headquarters are in Lund, Sweden. The company also has subsidiaries in Florida, USA, Toronto, Canada and Yokohama, Japan. For more information, visit www.cellavision.com.
CellaVision's share is listed on First North Premier at the OMX Stockholm Stock Exchange. The company's Certified Advisor is Remium AB.