Irvine Medical Products Firm Cuts Staff 15%, Boosts Sales Force

Citing slower-than-expected growth and delays in gaining FDA approval for a new medical device, Advanced Interventional Systems said Monday that it laid off 15% of its staff.

But the company also announced that it has increased its sales staff, from two to six. In all, the company has trimmed its work force from 144 to 120, said chief executive Robert E. Wall.

The layoffs came from a variety of departments, including assembly line, regulatory affairs and administration.

“We thought we were overstaffed and said we need to be prudent,” Wall said.

The layoffs were announced as the company issued a statement that revenue did not meet analysts’ expectations. Third-quarter revenues were down about 16% from what was predicted, Wall said.

Analysts had estimated third-quarter revenues between $4.2 million and $4.7 million. But in a quarterly earnings report, scheduled to be released in two weeks, Wall said that the company will report revenues of $3.5 million.

Wall also said that the company, which manufactures a laser for heart surgery, has been waiting for FDA approval of a new “family of catheters,” which could generate additional income from doctors who already own one of the company’s laser devices.

The catheters are guided through a patient’s arteries into the aorta, where a laser beam cuts away blood-clogging plaque. Such a procedure often makes dangerous bypass surgery unnecessary. The new catheters are considered more efficient that the current line of fiber-optic catheters.