New X-ray firm moving here from N.C.

Medcotek relocating to medical corridor

By Fred O. Williams, BUFFALO NEWS BUSINESS REPORTER
Updated: 03/15/07 6:38 AM
Find this article at: http://www.buffalonews.com/147/story/32993.html

A start-up technology company in North Carolina has chosen Buffalo's medical corridor as the launching pad for its X-ray image sharing service.

Medcotek Inc. in Charlotte plans to move its seven initial employees to the state Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences in April.

"From a medical standpoint there's a huge untapped resource" in Western New York, Chief Executive Fredric Zeigler said.

Medcotek's software and communications platform power remote X-ray analysis. The fledgling company plans to work with area hospitals while tapping the power of the bioinformatics center's supercomputer center.

Buffalo Biosciences, a consultant for biotech ventures, is working with the firm to raise $3 million in investment capital, partner Anthony Johnson said.

The market for teleradiology and communications is expected to reach more than $1 billion this year, Zeigler said.

Other companies are mining the business of sending medical images to far-flung radiologists for interpretation, aiding rural hospitals that lack radiologists as well as overnight emergency room staff.

Medcotek says it brings innovations that will give it a place in the market. Its software platform converts images to a common format, easily readable with minimal equipment on the radiologist's end, Zeigler said. And the system's image storage capacity makes it easy to compare past X-rays with new ones.

After three years the company expects to have about 70 employees and sales of $45 million to $65 million, Zeigler said.

The state's bioinformatics center on Virginia Street is serving as an incubator for the company's initial stage, a University at Buffalo spokesman said. The plan is for Medcotek to relocate to private-sector space within about 18 months.