Medical Illumination International wasn’t looking to acquire a separate company, and certainly not one located some 2,500 miles away in a city on the shore of Lake Erie. After all, the San Fernando-based company of lighting used in doctors’ and veterinarian offices was already busy enough with its own product lines. But the opportunity to acquire Nuvo, Inc. a manufacturer of surgical suite lighting and video systems in Erie, Penn. was too good to pass up. “It was an excellent opportunity to get into a whole other sector of the market we really hadn’t touched,” said Medical Illumination President Alan Kiviat. “This gets us directly into the hospitals, into the operating rooms. We don’t have any direct sales into hospitals currently with our products.” Nuvo President Tom Peterson said that the acquisition opens up the company to foreign markets that it had not been supplying. “From a distribution standpoint and product portfolio standpoint it seems like it’s going to work out well,” Peterson said. The acquisition of Nuvo is just one of the changes at the 28-year old company. Kiviat was recently promoted as president, while William B. Schellenberg, a founder of the company, was named as Chairman of the Board. The changes come at a time of growth for Medical Illumination, manufacturer of surgical and examination lights used by doctors, dermatologists, plastic surgeons and veterinarians. In 2005, the company saw a 57 percent increase in sales over the previous year, Kiviat said. Much of the company’s growth comes from the overseas market, the result of consolidation in the overall medical lighting industry. As companies consolidated, overseas distributors were left with no product to push and it was into that void that Medical Illumination stepped in. “We came out at the right time with our System One product line and gained quite a bit of interest,” Kiviat said. “A lot of companies that didn’t have anything were able to sell our product.” The System One product line features one to three ceiling mounted lights. The line has been especially popular in China, Kiviat said. The company is also expanding into South Korea, where it recently lined up its first distributor; Southeast Asia; Central and South Americas; and the Middle East, he added. Competitive market But while Medical Illumination’s products are in a niche market, the products from Nuvo are part of a market that is much more competitive. In addition to manufacturing its surgical lighting and video systems, Nuvo distributes surgical tables and equipment management systems. Nuvo’s main competition comes from businesses that are primarily overseas and have been around for decades, Peterson said, adding that when it comes to technology, Nuvo’s products are equal to or better than the competition. The integrated video monitor systems made by Nuvo allow a surgeon to see vital signs and images provided from laprosopic equipment inside a body, Peterson said. “We put the monitors right in front of them,” Peterson added. “We allow them to view different images they need to see during surgery.” Kiviat described the selling of the surgical lighting as “much more labor intensive” and involves the sales people setting up equipment that can be demonstrated to doctors before they decide to buy. The Pennsylvania sales team will be a plus for Medical Illumination’s product lines, Kiviat said. “Nuvo has existing sales teams throughout North America and some partnerships throughout the world,” Kiviat said. “We can take their sales teams to market our products. In addition we take their products and have the opportunity to get into areas where we are really strong.” There are no plans to move the Erie facility to the West Coast, Kiviat said, dismissing the idea as not being cost effective. The San Fernando facility houses 70 employees, while there are 27 employees in Pennsylvania. Medical Illumination expanded its plant size less than two years ago, moving into a sheet metal company next door to accommodate the growing need for warehouse space. Moving the Nuvo operations into a larger building may be in the offing in a couple of years, Kiviat said.