Amedica Forges Partnership with Weigao Orthopedic

Salt Lake City, Utah-based Amedica Corporation, which makes silicon nitride ceramics as a biomaterial platform, has forged a partnership with Shandong Weigao Orthopedic Device Company Limited, a subsidiary of Shandong Weigao Group Medical Polymer Company Limited, a medical device company in China specializing in the R&D, production and sale of spine, trauma and joint orthopedic implants.

Under the distribution agreement, Weigao Orthopedic will have exclusive rights for the sale, marketing and distribution of Amedica-branded silicon nitride spinal implants in the People’s Republic of China, and will abide by minimum annual purchase requirements in Year 1 of 20,000 units, growing annually to 50,000 units in Year 6, following regulatory clearance by the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA). Weigao Orthopedic will leverage its expertise in acquiring CFDA clearance of medical devices, in order to accelerate Chinese clearance of Amedica’s products.

“With more than 50,000 minimum unit sales to occur within the first two years following CFDA clearance, this agreement far surpasses total silicon nitride unit sales to-date, and marks a momentous time for Amedica,” said Dr. Sonny Bal, chairman and CEO. “This partnership with Weigao Orthopedic allows us to significantly increase our global sales footprint with a large-scale distribution partner who is familiar with the Chinese regulatory landscape. Weigao Orthopedic’s expertise in sales and distribution is an excellent fit for our innovative silicon nitride technology platform. We look forward to this key strategic partnership to distribute our silicon nitride technology into Asian markets that are particularly receptive to bioceramic implants.”

“We are very pleased with this exclusive distributor partnership as we plan to leverage the Amedica brand to offer a truly differentiated product to our broad network of hospitals and medical units in China,” stated Gong Jianbo, CEO and executive director of Weigao Orthopedic. “We expect the combination of this technically advanced biomaterial with our well-established network to quickly gain significant market share. We also look forward to expanding our partnership beyond spine products and into hip and knee applications. Weigao Orthopedic is well positioned to facilitate the approval and commercial launch of Amedica’s silicon nitride spinal fusion devices in one of the world’s largest healthcare markets.”

Amedica is focused on the development and application of interbody implants manufactured with medical-grade silicon nitride ceramic. The company makes spinal fusion products and is developing a new generation of wear- and corrosion-resistant implant components for hip and knee arthroplasty as well as dental applications.