From virtual reality surgical simulation to developing human cells and producing post-operative cool-heat devices, Commerce Park is bustling with research, development and technology. These businesses are thriving in Beachwood, where there are opportunities to collaborate.
“There is alignment in cluster initiatives that are spinning off in the health care arena, biomedical R&D — and synergies within the industrial park that can lead to more innovation and commercialization,” says Catherine Bieterman, economic development director for the City of Beachwood.
The city offers various programs to support businesses, from job creation tax credits and abatements to real estate incentives, says Beachwood Mayor Justin Berns. “We are also looking creatively at other ways to continue supporting resources that guide investment in those industry clusters in our community.”
VR in the OR — Surgical Theater
The same 360-degree, 3D virtual reality technology behind fighter pilot simulation training is the basis for Surgical Theater’s game-changing advanced imaging technology. It enables surgeons to rehearse patient-specific brain and spine procedures to plan the safest, most minimally invasive approaches.
Surgical Theater is the brainchild of Alon Geri, co-founder and chief technology officer. He spent 25 years as a research and development (R&D) officer and pilot in the Israeli Air Force, honing his tech capabilities and leading the development of flight simulators for F-15 pilots.
“We develop FDA-approved brain and spine simulation devices that are used by surgeons across the U.S. and Europe,” explains Geri. “Surgeons can use them to plan procedures and to explain surgeries to patients. Then, the same technology can be used in the operating room to be very precise in executing the surgical plan.”
Geri and co-founder Mopy Avisar founded Surgical Theater in Northeast Ohio after Geri was deployed here by the Israeli Air Force in the early 2000s for a high-end flight simulator project. Surgical Theater launched in 2011 after Geri retired from the Air Force and helped develop a visualization platform that illuminates complex procedures. Its tagline, “Beyond reality. Beyond imagination,” says it all.
He moved the business to Beachwood’s Commerce Park in September 2022, allowing Surgical Theater to manage its entire operation in one location, including R&D and production. With seven employees based in the office and about 30 more in the field, Geri says Beachwood has been a supportive community. “We feel at home,” he says.
Solving Post-Op Pain — Innovative Medical Equipment
A bag of frozen peas and cool gel packs are go-tos for most patients who undergo an orthopedic surgery or are dealing with chronic migraine pain. But sticking to a weekslong regimen that should reduce swelling and pain is not so easy to do. Most call it quits much sooner because of the inconvenience.
Innovative Medical Equipment (IME) co-founder Brad Pulver began having these discussions with business partner and renowned plastic surgeon and migraine research pioneer, Bahman Guyuron, MD. Together, they created a device called SootheAway that runs on 2 ounces of distilled water and can continuously cool the key areas triggering migraine pain. Users can adjust the warm-or-cold device from 35 degrees to 125 degrees.
“The patient or physician can set their own temperature or mode, heat or cool, and they have this continuous device that can run for hours, days, weeks at a time,” Pulver explains.
It’s hands free with pads designed for specific pain zones. Since the launch of SootheAway, the company has expanded — and rebranded the product to ThermaZone — to address other areas of the body including shoulder, back, knee, elbow and ankle.
“The focus is to treat post-orthopedic and post-operative pain in a nonpharmacological way, so you can put this device on after any orthopedic surgery (ACL, rotator cuff, total knee replacement, etc.) and wear it three to four weeks to deliver cooling therapy, which then reduces swelling and the need for opioids,” Pulver says.
Because the device is easy to use, patients are compliant with recovery recommendations from their doctors, Pulver adds.
With 15 employees in its Beachwood office and about 30 sales representatives across the country, IME is expanding, with Pulver developing another business out of this headquarters: Mercury Biomed. “With this company, we are trying to solve the problem of patient temperature management,” Pulver explains.
When a patient goes under anesthesia, core body temperature rapidly drops. “That can lead to life-threatening surgical complications,” he says. This is why the U.S. standard of care is to warm patients while they are under general anesthesia on the operating table. This usually occurs by using forced-air warming blankets and heated covers. But those have been criticized for potentially causing surgical site infections.
“We created a unique way to warm the core body with support from the world’s experts in core body temperature management that performed our first round of clinical trials,” Pulver says, relating that Mercury Biomed received a $1.5 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant along with a commercial acceleration loan from the State of Ohio to fund the development of WarmSmart. It is not yet FDA approved.
All of this is happening in Beachwood’s Commerce Park, where IME is conveniently located by major highways and the airport. Plus, the company has leveraged its large side-yard space by creating a hangout area for employees that includes picnic tables and a four-hole putting green. “People really enjoying coming to work here,” Pulver says, adding that during the pandemic, his team did not want to work from home. “They couldn’t wait to get back in the office.”
Finding a Cure for Diabetes — Trailhead Biosystems
Jan Jensen has a passion for finding a cure for diabetes. This keen interest is ultimately what led the molecular developmental biologist to start Trailhead Biosystems, which develops industrial-grade human cells from stem cells. The technology exists around the high-dimensional design of experiments dependent on computerized designs and robotics.
“We need to get beyond insulin treatments and move on to curing people instead,” Jensen says. “Why do we have to give injections every day?”
Jensen is the Eddie J. Brandon endowed chair of diabetes research at Cleveland Clinic, and he has published more than 50 peer-reviewed papers. He and his collaborative team relocated to Commerce Park Road in Beachwood in April 2023, investing more than $2 million into renovations, after running a lab out of the Cleveland Clinic incubator.
“The company is Ohio born,” Jensen says, adding that the cells are mainly used in cell-based therapy or as a resource for drug discovery.
Inside its spacious building, labs are developing different types of human cells to accelerate drug discovery and deliver human cells for therapeutic purposes.
“Those who need them are hospitals or pharmaceutical companies, and so while we could be located anywhere, it makes sense to be close to avenues where we can get those cells out.”
There is also plenty of room for expansion, which is important given Trailhead Biosystems’ growth trajectory. Jensen sees Beachwood as an ideal location for the burgeoning biotech industry.
