MDS Media Backgrounder

MDS is a global life sciences company that provides market-leading products and services used for the discovery and development of drugs, and the diagnosis and treatment of disease. The Company generated US$231 million in annual net revenue for the fiscal year ended October 31, 2009.

MDS is a publicly traded company on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: MDS) and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: MDZ). 

MDS has more than 2,400 employees located in nine countries and it distributes products and services in more than 50 countries.

In February 2010, MDS completed one of the biggest divestitures in its history with the sale of its MDS Analytical Technologies business, a leading global supplier of drug discovery and life sciences research tools, to Danaher Corporation for $650 million in cash. The Company currently intends to return approximately $400 million to $450 million of the sale proceeds to its shareholders. In 2007, MDS completed the largest divestiture (MDS Diagnostic Services) and the largest acquisition (Molecular Devices Corporation) in the Company's history, and returned value to shareholders through a $500 million share buyback.

The global life sciences markets in which MDS competes are among the most attractive in the world. These markets generate revenues of more than $8 billion – some of which are growing at double-digit rates in some sectors and regions.

MDS has a focused set of businesses with leading positions in life sciences markets. MDS businesses include MDS Nordion and MDS Pharma Services.

MDS Nordion is a leading global provider of thechnologies for use in medical imaging and radiotherapeutics, and sterilization. It supplies more than half of the world's medical isotopes to precisely diagnose, monitor and treat disease. Sterilization products and systems from MDS Nordion are used to sterilize more than 40% of the world's single-use medical supplies, such as bandages, catheters and syringes, and to sterilize about 80% of all surgical gloves in the world. MDS Nordion also partners with several worldwide leading academic centres on collaborative research and development, including the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, where MDS Nordion established a Molecular Imaging Centre of Excellence to advance cardiology research.

MDS Pharma Services, one of the world's leading contract research organizations, is committed to delivering Quality On Time™. It provides innovative early-stage drug discovery and development services to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including drug-development services (discovery and pre-clinical research services; phase I clinical trials; and bioanalytical services). MDS Pharma Services continues to invest in infrastructure and technology to better serve its clients. In 2008, it opened a new 300-bed, phase I facility in Phoenix and launched next-generation ClinQuick® study-management software for phase I clinical trials. The contract research organization was recognized for providing superior clinical-trial management services to clients, receiving two citations at the 2008 Good Clinical Practice Journal Awards in London.

MDS customers include the most prestigious researchers in pharmaceutical, biotechnology, government, and academic institutions around the world.