Orthofix International announces reorganization and settlement with NuVasive and Osiris Therapeutics

Orthofix International N.V. announced in a press release that it is undergoing an internal reorganization designed to streamline operations within its three global business units — spine, orthopedics and sports medicine — which will result in annual savings of approximately $6 million to $7 million per year beginning in 2011.

Orthofix also announced on behalf of itself and the Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation (MTF) that they have executed a comprehensive settlement agreement with NuVasive, Inc. and Osiris Therapeutics, Inc. concerning the Trinity Evolution tissue allograft. The lawsuit was filed in April in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey alleging that Trinity Evolution infringes intellectual property owned by NuVasive and Osiris, according to the press release. As part of the comprehensive settlement the parties entered into a license agreement covering Trinity Evolution. In connection with this settlement Orthofix will record a charge of $2 million in the fourth quarter of 2010. Additional specific terms of the settlement, including initial and ongoing financial terms, are confidential, the company said.

"The global reorganization we announced today is another key step toward the achievement of our plan to improve our operating profit margin, and was facilitated in part by the recent consolidation of operations into our new facility in Lewisville, Texas. This initiative will result in substantial annual savings after the initial fourth quarter charge," Orthofix International President and CEO Alan Milinazzo, stated in the release. "Additionally, we are very pleased to have come to what we believe is a mutually beneficial resolution to the patent matter related to Trinity Evolution."