Wheelcare Ltd. Chooses Camarillo for U. S. Office

Wheelcare Ltd., an Israeli manufacturer of powered wheelchairs and electric vehicles and scooters, has chosen Camarillo as the site of its United States headquarters.

Under the name Wheelcare Inc., the local office will be involved in sales, marketing and distribution of products sold in this country. For the short term, the focus will be on promoting the corporation’s two new lines of wheelchairs.

“One will be a lightweight, foldable wheelchair, one that you don’t have to take off the motors or the battery to fold up,” said Hal Gutterman, chief operating officer of the U. S. operation. “Anywhere you go, you can just put it in a box and take it with you.” He said the wheelchairs should be available to the public in July or August.

Gutterman, a resident of Westlake Village, said the company also plans to introduce a wheelchair that, unlike common wheelchairs, is built with the large wheels in front and the small wheels in back. This wheelchair is expected to be unveiled toward the end of the year.

“It will allow quadriplegics and paraplegics to have full mobility outdoors,” he said. “It will allow someone to go over a six-inch curb without tipping over.”

Wheelcare Ltd. began operation in Israel earlier this year when a group of Israeli businessmen signed an incorporation agreement with the S.A.E. Afikim Factory, located on the Afikim kibbutz.

Wheelcare Ltd.’s production facility and main headquarters are now in the industrial area of Caesaria, a town about 45 miles from Tel Aviv. The corporation’s European operations are based in London.