Mick Farrell, CEO of ResMed, is urging semiconductor manufacturers to prioritize sending supplies to medical devicemakers amid global shortages, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported Oct. 28.
Semiconductors have been in shortage globally due to pandemic strains on the global supply chain, and shortages are expected to continue for the foreseeable future, the Union-Tribune reported.
"I am definitely working with some of the biggest names out there and really asking, begging, pleading that we should prioritize medical devices over another cellphone, another electric car, another cloud-connected refrigerator," Mr. Farrell told the Union-Tribune.
Despite the challenge of getting semiconductors for its medical devices, San Diego-based medical devicemaker ResMed posted strong third quarter results Oct. 28, according to the Union-Tribune. It reported $904 million in revenue, up 20 percent over last year. Net income grew 14 percent to $204 million.
Mr. Farrell told the publication that demand for sleep apnea devices has helped its sales following Philips' recall of about 3.5 million sleep apnea devices in June. The company recalled the devices after finding a defect that could cause cancer, and the recall led to shortages of ventilation devices.
But higher costs of flying freight caused a decline in ResMed's gross profit margins, the Union-Tribune reported.
"About 150 ships are backed up off Long Beach. Our products go on those ships. We've had to charter planes to fly from Singapore to Atlanta, Singapore to Los Angeles, to our distribution centers," Mr. Farrell told the Union-Tribune. "It's like a game of whack-a-mole. There are bottlenecks. You solve one, and then another one appears."
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