Telectronics

Telectronics was an Australian company best known for its role in developing the pacemaker. The business was acquired by Pacific Dunlop. However, claims resulting from the sale of faulty pacemakers led to eventual sale of the assets of the company and Pacific Dunlop restructuring itself into Ansell.

Development of the pacemaker

Telectronics Pty Ltd was founded in Sydney,Australia, in 1963(2)(3)(13) by engineers Noel Gray and Geoffrey Wickham as a manufacturer of industrial electronic instruments. (2)(3)(4). The company commenced cardiac pacemaker research in 1964 (2)(4) following on earlier research by engineer Keith W Jeffcoat and surgeon Mr Rowan Nicks (2)(4)at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital of Sydney, funded in part by grant no. G171 of 1963 from the National Heart Foundation of Australia.(4)(5)(6) Significant contributions to pacemaker technology by the company was the first use of monolithic microcircuits (model P7 of 1968), the first hermetic sealing of the pacemaker in a titanium capsule (model P10 of 1971) and the first lithium-iodide (Wilson Greatbatch) powered pacemakers using the combined technologies of microcircuits and hermetic titanium encapsulation (model 120 of 1974).(2)(3).

The first microcircuits were developed by David Money(2)(7) of A.W.A Microelectronics (AWM), Sydney, who was later to head the development of the cochlear implant for the profoundly deaf, while David J. Cowdery (2)(7)was responsible for development of the welding and ceramics technologies for the titanium encapsulation.

The company was incorporated in the USA in 1974 and in 1977 commenced US manufacture from the former General Electric facility in Milwaukee, later relocated to Denver.

Pacific Dunlop

Nucleus Limited which contained offshoots such as Telectronics and Cochlear Pty Ltd which developed the cochlear implant was floated on the Australian stock market. In 1988, it was acquired by Pacific Dunlop which was hoping to diversify away from so-called rustbelt companies. At the time of acquisition, Telectronics was number 2 in the worldwide pacemaker market. (1)

In January 1995, Telectronics was forced to recall thousands of pacemakers by the Food and Drug Administration leading to the company having to eventually settle expensive legal claims at a cost of hundreds of millions of dollars. (2) Pacific Dunlop sold most of the assets of Telectronics Pty Limited to St Jude Medical of Miami and Telectronics Pty Limited is now a shelf company TPL Pty Limited. Pacific Dunlop restructured in 2001 becoming Ansell with the high cost of the Telectronics settlement being a significant factor in the decision. (3)

Sources

• ['Telectronics the Early Years' N D Gray, C J Gray, 1993, ISBN 0 646 15134 7]

• "Australian Science at Work" entry on Telectronics

• Corporate History of Pacific Dunlop

• FDA BBS on faulty Telectronics leads January 24, 1995 retrieved 1 December 2005

• Australian Science at Work entry on Nucleus Limited

• "Technology in Australia 1788-1988" Melbourne University page 889

Footnotes

(1) "Technology in Australia" 1788-1988". Op.Cit. page 889.

(2) "Telectronics and The History Of Pacemaking In Australia", Wickham G G, Jeffcoat KW, 1987, manuscript held by austehc University Of Melbourne (www.austehc.unimelb.edu.au.)

(3)"Telectronics The Early Years" Gray N D, Gray C J, 1994. ISBN 0 646151 34 7.

(4) Memoirs of Paul M Trainor, founder of Nucleus Ltd, controlling shareholder Telectronics 1967-1982, Chairman Telectronics 1969-1988.

(5) Royal Prince Alfred Hospital advice of payment note 7/27/1963.

(6) Letter K W Jeffcoat-Royal Prince Alfred Hospital 7/27/1963

(7 "The Story of the Bionic Ear", June Epstein,ISBN 0 947062 54 2, pp. 48,49,51.

(8) " A trip to Australia", Dr Wilson Greatbatch, www.meaus/A_Trip to Australia.html. p.7.

(9) "US Ruling endorses PacDun pacemaker claims proposal" The Adelaide Advertiser 22 November 2000 retrieved through the Australian New Zealand Reference Centre 1 December 2005

(10) "PacDun's Demise "tragic"" Melbourne Age, 2 April 2001, retrieved through the Australian New Zealand Reference Centre 1 December 2005

(11) 'Treatment of complete heart block Using an Implantable Transvenous Pacemaker of Australian Manufacture: Technique and Results' T B Cartmill, F B Clark, Rowan Nicks, and L Bernstein, The Medical Journal of Australia, Aug 1968,260-268

(12) 'Sydney makes the heart pace' David Haselhurst, The Bulletin, June 26, 1976

(13) Published Corporate Affairs and Taxation Returns records for Telectronics Pty Limited.

(14) 'Localised TV Service' Oz Mingay, Mingay's Weekly, Nov 27, 1959

(15) 'Some observations on the surgical treatment of heart block in degenerative heart disease' Dr Rowan Nicks, Dr G Stenning, E Hume (Honorary consulting engineer to the Adolf Basser Institute, Sydney)

(16) University of Sydney Medical School examination records (1948-50) for Noel D Gray

(17) 'One hundred cases of treatment of Stokes-Adams Syndrome with permanent intraveneous Pacemaker' Lagergren, H., et al, J Thorac Cardiovgs Surg., (1965) 50;710 and 'Cardiac pacing: Results with three different techniques', Ann roy Coll Surg Eng., 1965 27:155

(18) 'The Cardiac Pacemaker function and malfunction' Harry G Mond, Grune & Stratton ISBN 0-8089-1578-9, 1983, p43

(19) 'Cardiology in Australia and New Zealand' Hickie J B, Hickie K P, 1966, ISBN 0 7316 9320 5, Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand, 147-51