Invacare 2013 Annual Report Download - page 9

I-3
PART I
Item 1. Business.
GENERAL
Invacare Corporation is a leading manufacturer and distributor in its estimated $4.0 billion core global and geographic
markets for medical equipment used in the home and long-term care settings based upon its distribution channels, breadth of
product line and net sales. The Company designs, manufactures and distributes an extensive line of health care products for the
non-acute care environment, including the home health care and extended care markets. The Company revises and expands its
product lines to meet changing market demands and currently offers numerous product lines. The Company sells its products
principally to home health care and medical equipment providers, distributors and government locations in the United States,
Europe, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and Asia. Invacare’s products are sold through its worldwide distribution network by its
sales force, telesales associates and independent manufacturers’ representatives and distributors.
Invacare is committed to design and deliver the best value in medical products, which promote recovery and active lifestyles
for people requiring home and other non-acute health care. Invacare pursues this vision by:
• designing and developing innovative and technologically superior products;
• ensuring continued focus on the Company’s primary market—the non-acute health care market;
• marketing the Company’s broad range of products;
• driving efficiency and innovation through the use of the Company’s global resources;
• providing a professional and cost-effective sales, customer service and distribution organization;
• supplying innovative provider support and product line extensions;
• building a strong referral base among health care professionals;
• continuously advancing and recruiting top management candidates;
• empowering all employees;
• providing a performance-based reward environment;
• pursuing excellence through ongoing improvements to its quality systems to achieve sustainable regulatory
compliance; and
• continually striving for total quality throughout the organization.
The Company is a corporation organized under the laws of the State of Ohio in 1971. When the Company was acquired in
December 1979 by a group of investors, including some of its current officers and directors, it had $19.5 million in net sales and
a limited product line of lifestyle wheelchairs and patient aids. Invacare net sales in 2013 were approximately $1.4 billion thus
yielding a 13% compound average annual sales growth rate since 1979. Based upon the Company’s distribution channels, breadth
of product line and net sales, Invacare is a leading company in many of the following major, non-acute, medical equipment
categories: power and manual wheelchairs, homecare bed systems and home respiratory therapy.
The Company’s executive offices are located at One Invacare Way, Elyria, Ohio, 44036 and its telephone number is
[phone]. In this report, “Invacare” and the “Company” refer to Invacare Corporation and, unless the context otherwise
indicates, its consolidated subsidiaries.
THE HOME MEDICAL EQUIPMENT INDUSTRY
North America Market
The home medical equipment (HME) market includes home health care products, physical rehabilitation products and
other non-disposable products used for the recovery and long-term care of patients. As healthcare spending continues to escalate
around the world, particularly in the United States, the Company believes that homecare is a significant part of the solution for
healthcare reform. A New England Journal of Medicine article suggested that by 2030, the number of people in the United States
over 65 is expected to exceed 70 million. With the costs of healthcare continuing to increase in a currently unsustainable healthcare