Össur hf. and Ó. Johnson & Kaaber hf. establish a New Business

Össur hf. and Ó. Johnson & Kaaber hf. have founded a new healthcare company. Össur hf. – Hjálpartækjabankinn -  a divisions  within  Össur hf., and the ÓJ&K Health Products Division are merged into a  new company, which plans to expand  service and product range. Each company owns a 50% share in the new company. Íslandsbanki-FBA (Bank of Iceland - Icelandic Investment Bank) acted on behalf of Össur hf., while Búnaðarbankinn (The Agricultural Bank of Iceland) acted on behalf of ÓJ&K. The divisions currently operate in separate fields, but the new company will equally serve individuals and healthcare institutions. The consolidated turnover for 2000 is estimated to be around ISK  300 million (USD 3,4 million).  <br>
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The objective of Össur hf. and ÓJ&K is to establish a strong company that will combine the forces of knowledge, business connections, and product availability to create new opportunities. Jón Sigurðsson, Össur’s CEO says, “The operations of “Hjálpartækjabankinn” have so far been separated from the core operations of Össur hf.: the design, manufacture, and sale of prosthetics solutions. Present resent organization does not  allow  sufficient focus on retail. We chose to do it  this way because we believe this operation  can create numerous opportunities. We don’t believe that the establishment of this new company will affect Össur’s financial prospects. The turnover of Össur – Hjálpartækjabankinn- is estimated to be around ISK 134 million this year (USD 1,5 million).”<br>
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Friðþjófur Ó. Johnson, CEO of ÓJ&K says, “We are optimistic about the future of the merger and we hope to provide our clients with even better service than before. You could call this merger a direct consequence of the organizational changes we’ve been implementing this year - which were recently announced.”<br>
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Össur hf. – Hjálpartækjabankinn - has operated a retail business with job-ergonomical products for industry, prosthetics, medical support products, and nursing products for hospitals. ÓJ&K’s  Health Products Division has provided sales and service for various specialized products and equipment for medical research, nursing, and general healthcare.<br>
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The new company’s headquarters will be at Grjótháls 5, which is where “Hjálpartækjabankinn” is currently located. The new company is scheduled to start  operating on  January 1, 2001.  Stefán Smári Skúlason will be the company’s  Managing Director.<br>