Type Private Company Key people David W. Wright
(CEO) Founder David W. Wright | Headquarters Englewood, CO Founded 2001 | |
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Industry Medical Device Development Products Diagnostics, Therapeutics, Biologics | ||
Wi, Inc. (pronounced as an initialism, "double-u i.") is an American medical device development corporation incorporated and headquartered in Englewood, CO. Wi specializes in in-vitro diagnostic microfluidic disposable cartridges and instruments, biological assays on and off disposable cartridges, and electromechanical devices. In 2004, Wi was a Gold Winner of the Medical Design Excellence Awards for the LifePort Kidney Transporter.
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History
Wi, Inc. was founded by David W. Wright in 2001 in Englewood, Colorado.
Facilities
Wi, Inc. was first located in a 2,000-square-foot (190 m2) building, but in 2005 the company moved. It is now centered in a 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) location, equipped with a 400-square-foot (37 m2) class 10,000 clean room, a blood processing lab, a device lab, and a prototype machine shop.
Products
In the areas of biologics, diagnostics, and therapeutics, Wi championed many products.
Biologics
In the field of biologics, Wi specializes in assay development, including custom ELISA, flow cytometry, and hematology and coagulation, and lab capabilities, including cell counting, spectrophotometry, and in-house phlebotomy. In microscopy, Wi utilizes cellular imaging and fluorescence for enhanced evaluations of assays.
Diagnostics
Wi works with diagnostic processes and services, including membrane sealing and laser welding. The majority of Wi's products is in the field of diagnostics, with many point-of-care tests and applications such as thermal cycling and air bubble venting. Wi has worked on many point-of-care tests, including designing and prototyping a disposable card, hardware, and mixing on-card assay, and readying the Point-of-Care DNA-MRSA test for full PC control and lab use. For a CD4 Point-of-Care test, Wi designed and pilot-built the card, did design assay and integration, and worked with the imaging software and hardware interface.
Therapeutics
Therapeutics make up a large part of Wi's work, ranging from extracorporeal system design, surgical device design, and critical component interface. In 2003, Wi worked on the LifePort Kidney Transporter, a therapeutic designed to support out-of-body kidneys for transplants. Wi designed and scaled-up hardware, disposables, and did the verification and validation of the product, worked for 11 months on the LifePort, and had a successful launch. This device was unique in that it perfused a nutrient solution while maintaining thermal control, thus extending the viability of the organ for up to 72 hours. The device significantly reduces the risk of Delayed Graft Function, even in DCD (donation after cardiac death) organs. Wi, along with IDEO and Zevex, received a Gold Medical Device Excellence Award in 2004 for the product. Also a Wi therapeutic, the LumaWave is a therapeutic device built around using ultrasonic waves to soothe pain. Wi took the core technology, developing the basic product configuration, from concept to production in seven months. Wi also produced all aspects of the final device, including production ultrasonic welding systems, proprietary flex-circuit over-mold, ergonomic design and several utility patents.