Siemens Healthineers

History

19th Century

The history of Siemens Healthineers started in Berlin in the mid-19th century as a part of what is now known as Siemens AG. Siemens & Halske was founded by Werner von Siemens and Johann Georg Halske on 12 October 1847. The company formed around a new innovative invention created by Siemens called the pointer telegraph. Based on the telegraph, Werner von Siemens’ new invention used a needle to point to the sequence of letters, instead of using Morse code. The company, then called Telegraphen-Bauanstalt von Siemens & Halske, opened its first workshop on the 12th of October. Eventually, the new company included electrometrical equipment and specialized in medical technology.

Three years previously, in 1844, Werner von Siemens put one of his inventions to use for medical purposes for the first time, using electricity to treat his brother Friedrich for tooth pain. After teaming up with Halske, the new company’s products included electromedical equipment. In Erlangen, Erwin Moritz Reiniger laid the cornerstone for Reiniger, Gebbert & Schall, a company specializing in medical technology.

In 1896, only one year after Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered the x-ray, Siemens produced the first industrially manufactured X-ray tubes for medical diagnostics.

20th Century

In Aschaffenburg, Germany, X-ray pioneer Friedrich Dessauer founded his own company, which later came to prominence under the name Veifa-Werke. The companies maintained close ties with each other, finally merging in 1932 to form Siemens-Reiniger-Werke (SRW). The company soon came to be viewed as the world’s largest specialized electromedical company. Later, in 1933, Siemens introduced rotating anode tubes for x-rays that could withstand much greater electrical loads, laying the foundation for the development of modern X-ray tubes.

Supported by Siemens in Erlangen, Germany, Inge Edler, a Swedish physician, and physicist Carl Hellmuth Hertz were intrigued by the idea of using ultrasound technology to achieve more precise heart diagnoses. In 1953, they became the first to use the ultrasound technique for echocardiography. Today, this powerful ultrasound process is a standard component of all cardiovascular examinations.

In 1958, Elema-Schönander AB (subsequently Siemens-Elema AB) developed the first cardiac pacemaker implanted in a critically ill heart patient by surgeon, Åke Senning.

Siemens engineer Ralph Soldner developed the world’s first "real-time" ultrasound unit, the Vidoson, in the 1960s. With this technology, technicians could view movements inside the body on a screen right while they were taking place, a feature that became especially important in obstetrics and pediatrics.

The company released its first computed tomography scanner, the Siretom, in 1975, a year after it exhibited its first tomographic image of a human head at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America in Chicago. A typical examination took less than six minutes. The skull is scanned from various directions by an X-ray tube and a detector unit, and an image of absorption distribution in the brain is generated in the computer.

The first magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner, Siemens’ MAGNETOM system, came to the market in 1983. With the aid of powerful magnetic fields, MRI scanners produce high-quality cross-sectional images without exposing patients to radiation. The sectional images displayed tissues and organs more clearly than ever before.

Siemens introduced the first track-based laboratory automation system—the ADVIA LabCell Automation Solution in 1998, allowing for increased efficiency and reduced costs.

The company’s imaging devices use syngo, an image processing software developed by the company in 1999. The software provides a single user interface for a large number of imaging systems, integrating patient-specific physiological and imaging data into clinical workflows.

21st Century

Siemens was the first to combine positron emission tomography (PET) with computed tomography (CT). By creating this hybrid imaging system, Siemens combined the PET scanner’s ability to visualize biological processes of life with a CT systems anatomical image of tissues and organs. In doing so, the combination system gives a more detailed image of anatomy and biological function. Time magazine named the Siemens Biograph, the world's first commercial PET-CT scanner, the "Innovation of the Year" in 2000.

In a similar fashion, Siemens launched the Biograph mMR in 2010, the first scanner to completely combine MRI and PET technologies. . Like PET-CT, PET-MR hybrid systems combine multiple technologies to provide a better image of the body, enabling for better diagnoses, research and treatment plans for patients. It combines precise images of the body's organs from MRI with metabolic cell activity from PET.

In May 2016, Siemens AG rebranded the healthcare division from Siemens Healthcare to Siemens Healthineers. The change reflected part of the Siemens AG Vision 2020 strategy announced nearly two years previously that its healthcare business would be separately managed as a company within the company with a new organizational setup. The new name aimed to embody the company’s pioneering spirit and engineering expertise in the healthcare industry.

Organizational structure

Geography

Siemens Healthineers is geographically divided into six regions: Central Europe, Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA), Western Europe and Western Africa (WEA), North America (NAM), Latin America (LAM), North East Asia (NEA), and Asia Pacific (APC). Its global headquarters is located in Erlangen, Germany.

Currently, its U.S. business, Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc., is a Delaware corporation with headquarters in Malvern, Pennsylvania. In October 2015, David Pacitti joined Siemens Healthineers as the new President of Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc. and Head of the North America Region.

Operations

Siemens Healthineers provides a wide range of medical devices and products: Point of Care Diagnostics, Laboratory Diagnostics, Diagnostic Imaging, Ultrasound, Advanced Therapies, and Services:

Advanced Therapies – Offers imaging systems for cardiology, interventional radiology, surgery, and radiation oncology. Global President: Heinrich Kolem. Global HQ: Forchheim, Germany.

Computed Tomography – Global Head: Andre Hartung. Global HQ: Forchheim, Germany.

Laboratory Diagnostics – Offers immunoassay, chemistry, hematology, molecular, urinalysis, and blood gas testing systems, in conjunction with automation, informatics and services. Global President: Franz Walt. Global HQ: Tarrytown, NY

Magnetic Resonance – Global SVP and General Manager: Christoph Zindel. Global HQ: Erlangen, Germany.

Molecular Diagnostics – Offers molecular diagnostic systems and assays. Global President: Fernando Beils. Global HQ: Berkeley, Calif.

Molecular Imaging – Offers positron emission tomography (PET), single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), and hybrid SPECT (SPECT/CT) imaging systems and solutions; wholly owned subsidiary PETNET Solutions, Inc., operates network of PET radiopharmacies. Global Head, Molecular Imaging: Jim Williams, PhD; Global HQ: Hoffman Estates, Ill. President, PETNET Solutions, Inc.: Barry Scott; Global HQ: Knoxville, Tenn.

Point of Care Diagnostics – Provides point-of-care diagnostic products and services in the areas of blood gas, diabetes, urinalysis and coagulation. Global President: Peter Koerte. Global HQ: Tarrytown, NY.

X-ray Products – Offers digital, analog, and portable radiography systems, as well as robotic X-ray, fluoroscopy, mammography and biopsy, and urology systems. Global Head: Francois Nolte. Global HQ: Forchheim, Germany.

Refurbished Systems – Offers refurbished Siemens Healthineers angiography, computed tomography, magnetic resonance, mammography, and molecular imaging systems. Global Head: Ghada Trotabas. Global HQ: Forchheim, Germany.

Services – Provides system care services, education services, enterprise services, and digital health services. Global President: Matthias Platsch. Global HQ: Erlangen, Germany.

Ultrasound – Global President: Said Seyed-Bolorforosh. Global HQ: Mountain View, Calif.

Charitable activities

Siemens Healthineers has supported charitable giving around the world. The company has supported such programs such as the American Society for Clinical Pathology’s (ASCP) laboratory student scholarships, the PATH Ingenuity Fellows mentorship program, and others.

The company has also contributed to disaster relief efforts. In response to hurricane Katrina in 2005, Siemens Healthineers donated heart monitors and imaging equipment to Houston-area hospitals while parent company, Siemens AG, matched 100% of U.S. employee donations to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund. After the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Siemens Healthineers donated medical equipment to aid healthcare workers in their efforts to help victims. The company responded similarly in 2015 when a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Nepal. Siemens Healthineers provided the relief efforts with a magnetic resonance imaging machine in addition to the funds donated by Siemens AG.

Controversy

On 4 May 2016, current Healthcare Sector CEO Bernd Montag introduced to the public the new brand name "Healthineers," along with a five-minute dance routine celebration outside the Healthineers headquarters in Erlangen. This caused immense PR backlash and ridicule for the company and its employees. The Financial Times called it a "Writhing spandex clad horror." Multiple outlets called the new logo similar to that of Fitbit and called the rebranding a failure at large. Multiple users on Reddit and Twitter also dragged the name through the mud. The name also led some people to believe that it was an article from The Onion. Montag later admitted that the dance routine was a mistake.

Competition

Major competitors of Siemens Healthineers are GE Healthcare, Philips, Canon Inc., Shimadzu in diagnostic imaging, and Abbott and Roche in laboratory diagnostics.