DIASORIN and BECKMAN COULTER Sign a Distribution Partnership for Hepatitis and HIV Tests in China

DiaSorin and Beckman Coulter Diagnostics, a global leader in clinical diagnostics, have announced a signed distribution partnership agreement for the commercialization in China of DiaSorin Hepatitis B, C and HIV tests. DiaSorin LIAISON XL LAS has been connected with Beckman Coulter’s leading automation solutions, the Power Express and Power Processor automated sample processing systems.

The mutually beneficial partnership enables DiaSorin to pursue its strategy to target large-size hospitals in China, where there is a growing need to provide fully automated solutions able to run both clinical chemistry and immunoassays on the same platform, and facilitates Beckman Coulter to pursue its strategy to provide a broad menu through an integrated automation solution to its large volume customers in China. By combining Beckman Coulter’s world-class diagnostic automation platforms with DiaSorin’s high-quality blood virus menu on the LIAISON XL LAS, Beckman Coulter’s automation customers are provided a more comprehensive, highly efficient, workflow solution for all patient sample management.

“This agreement confirms our strategy to strengthen our presence in the large laboratories worldwide, including China,” said Carlo Rosa, CEO of DiaSorin Group. “Our Hepatitis B, C and HIV offer is complementary to that of Beckman Coulter, and I believe our combined menu will make the product offering complete and very competitive versus the other large players in this market”.

The agreement confirms several strategic directions for the companies. For DiaSorin, the company is enabled to succeed in the consolidated laboratory business: 1) In general, the commercial strategy for the large-size accounts where the connectivity of the LIAISON XL with automated laboratory track systems of different partners is necessary to exploit the strength of our menu offering; 2) Specifically, China as a key market where the company expects to grow over 20% per year reaching the vast hospital base both with our stand alone systems as well as partnering where full automation is required. Additionally, for Beckman Coulter, by choosing DiaSorin as its partner for this strategic initiative, the company furthers its market leading position in the important China IVD automation segment.

“With this agreement, laboratories in the China market can experience the benefits of improved workflow through our automation and broad solutions in hematology, chemistry and immunochemistry along with DiaSorin’s complementary menu of assays,” said Arnd Kaldowski, president, Beckman Coulter Diagnostics. “The agreement further demonstrates our recognition of the strength of the China market and our commitment to its continued growth.”

Regarding the Hepatitis and Retrovirus tests’ potential, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2013 in China, 120 million people were infected with Hepatitis B, 39 million with Hepatitis C and close to one million with HIV.

Today, DiaSorin is already present on this market on the Blood Bank segment with the Murex ELISA product line, as well as with our LIAISON XL Hepatitis, HIV product lines in the midsize hospital segment. The company estimates that the total Chinese market for Hepatitis and HIV testing is more than $250 million in value with an annual growth rate in the range of 10-12%.