Get to Know Your Community: Interview with Stephen Randall, CFO of Titan Medical Inc.
This month, we speak with Stephen Randall, CFO of Titan Medical Inc. (OTCQX: TITXF). The TSX-venture listed company, which trades on OTCQX for its U.S. investors, is focused on the design and development of a robotic surgical system for application in minimally invasive surgery. Mr. Randall talks to us about where the company is in its development cycle, the role of OTCQX in raising additional funding in the U.S. and growth in the global medical robotic systems market.
OTC Markets Group (OTCM): Tell us about Titan Medical. What do you do?
Stephen Randall (SR): Titan Medical is developing a Single Port Orifice Robotic Technology (SPORT™) Surgical System, which is comprised of a surgeon-controlled single incision robotic platform that includes a 3D high definition vision system and interactive instruments for performing minimally invasive surgery (“MIS”) procedures. The surgeon workstation provides the surgeon with an interface to the robotic platform and a 3D endoscopic view of inside a patient’s body during MIS procedures. The SPORT™ Surgical System will enable the surgeon to insert surgical instruments and 3D vision into the patient’s body through a 25 mm skin incision. Once inserted, the device will deploy into a working configuration wherein the 3D vision system and interactive multi-articulating instruments are controlled by a surgeon at the workstation.
OTCM: You have competitors in the market. How will Titan Medical’s robotic surgery technology compare?
SR: Titan’s SPORT™ Surgical System has the following advantages versus competitive systems:
improved dexterity and surgical access;
small architecture providing easy set-up and manoeuvrability;
designed for small space surgery;
an estimated capital cost of less than $1,000,000;
competitive replacement costs for surgical tools; and
a smaller footprint in the operating room.
OTCM: Where are you in the development cycle? When do you expect to reach commercialization?
SR: Titan is on track with respect to its testing phases and is expected to attain all its clinical milestones on schedule. Titan has completed its first major milestone -- the completion of technical feasibility and integrated testing -- and is about to start its second major milestone. The second phase is initiation of pre-clinical and clinical planning process with FDA. The third and fourth phases are CE Mark (European Union) regulatory approval and the commercial launch in the European Union market, respectively. CE Mark approval is expected during 2015 followed by the commercial launch of the product in the European Union later in 2015. The fifth phase, initiation of FDA 510(K) approval, is expected near the end of 2015 with commercialization following quickly thereafter.
OTCM: You recently completed two capital raises. How much did you raise and what do you plan to do with the proceeds?
SR: Titan raised almost U.S. $35 million in two equity raises this spring. These funds will be used to finance the development of Titan’s Single Port Orifice Robotic Technology (SPORT™) Surgical System through to commercialization. Titan has essentially taken all financial risk off the table.
OTCM: Titan Medical joined OTCQX on February 24, 2012. How has OTCQX helped you leverage your existing regulatory filings to globalize your shareholder base?
SR: Approximately 80% of Titan’s investors are American. Listing on the OTCQX has helped Titan to grow and maintain its American shareholder base and attract new investors. In its most recent offerings, Titan was able to raise additional funding in the U.S. Previously, the vast majority of Titan’s funding was raised in Canada.
OTCM: What else should U.S. investors knows about Titan Medical?
SR: The global medical robotic systems market is currently worth $4 billion of which a little more than half consists of Intuitive Surgical, the largest robotic surgery company in the world that is currently marketing its product. The global medical robotic systems market is expected to be worth $20 billion by 2020.
Titan’s development work is being done by Ximedica out of Providence, Rhode Island, a full service ISO 13485 certified and FDA registered product development firm with an exclusive focus on medical products.
