Vibrant Technology at the Heart of Five Innovative Companies, one of five companies profiled
Founded in 2010 by three men of Israeli descent, ControlRad has recently relocated from Pennsylvania to Georgia. I was able to speak to CEO Guillaume Bailliard as he settled in at their new Global Headquarters in Peachtree Corners.
They moved from Atlanta Tech Park to their new office space at 275 Scientific Dr. N.W. after securing $15 million from Questa Capital in September. “That helped fuel the growth of the company, including planting our flag here, at this facility,” Bailliard said.
Their Research and Development Team, comprised of 20 R&D engineers, is located in Kfar Saba, just outside of Tel Aviv. “The number one place in the world today for startups per capita in Israel,” Bailliard shared.
X-rays Come at a Cost
To fully appreciate ControlRad’s innovation, it’s important to understand a bit of x-ray technology. Hint: think ‘control radiation.’
“The radiation you get from x-ray is ionizing radiation—high-energy wavelengths or particles that penetrate tissue to reveal the body’s internal organs and structures. Ionizing radiation can damage DNA.” [Radiation Risk from Medical Imaging (2018), Harvard Health Publishing, Harvard Medical School]
X-rays allow us to see inside the body without invasive surgery. Traditionally, static x-ray is used if you break your arm, in order to see the fracture. It’s the same type of x-ray you get at the dentist’s office. “There is very little risk with that single exposure,” Bailliard explained.
However, continuous x-ray or Fluoroscopy, used by doctors like cardiologists, spine surgeons and urologists to see specific organs in real-time and to deploy devices inside the body like stents, without having to perform exploratory surgery, “subjects medical staff and patients to a tremendous amount of dangerous and unnecessary x-ray exposures in a single procedure,” Bailliard said. “A certain percentage of that prolonged radiation exposure scatters outside the body to the medical staff and to patients needlessly.”
During a fluoroscopic procedure, the physician is at the table beside to you, deploying the devices and getting radiated in very close proximity to the x-ray unit.
What Drives ControlRad’s Innovation?
The issue is that much of the scattered radiation reaches the medical staff. “They get roughly 150,000 worth of chest x-rays over a lifetime. This is a lot like the NFL concussion story,” Bailliard said, “in the sense that the issues with concussions have always been there, but it is only recently that we truly understand the long-term impact of repeated concussions.”
Similarly, medical staff has always been subjected to radiation, but the adverse effects of this have not been well-documented until now. Risks include increased incidents of cataracts, atherosclerosis, strokes and left-brain tumors. (The x-ray tube is closest to the left side of the physician’s head during procedures.)
Don’t be Afraid to Seek Treatment
While we may have a fluoroscopic procedure once or twice in a lifetime, physicians are performing them repeatedly throughout the day. ControlRad helps protect the medical staff providing life-saving treatment to patients.
“I don’t want readers to be afraid of going to see a cardiologist to get treated, or to get an x-ray of the hand,” Bailliard said. “Everyone should ask the right questions about the risks of radiation with their physicians. The risks for patients are very low. It’s a risk-benefit ratio and the benefits typically greatly outweigh the risks.”
How Low Can You Go?
Since no amount of radiation from an x-ray is good for you, ControlRad adheres to the FDA espoused guiding principle of radiation safety: ALARA, which stands for: As Low as Reasonably Achievable. In other words, how low can you get radiation exposure without impacting the ability to treat patients? Am I the only one singing “How Low Can You Go” in my head right now?
To that end, it is ControlRad’s mission to dramatically reduce the unnecessary risks associated with gratuitous radiation exposure without compromising image quality or workflow. It’s an undertaking that benefits both patients and physicians, but their primary focus is on protecting medical staff who are in harm’s way for the span of their careers.
ControlRad Reduces Radiation by up to 89%
510(k) Cleared—the FDA has granted permission to go to market—ControlRad’s device consists of three components retrofitted onto existing x-ray units. (See Figure 1.)
EYE TRACKER / TABLET Used to select the region-of-interest (ROI), either by detecting where the doctor is looking, or by allowing the doctor to draw an ROI manually on the tablet.
INTEGRATED SEMI-TRANSPARENT TITANIUM FILTER The filter sits on top of the x-ray tube. It moves in real-time focusing on the selected ROI and reducing the x-ray beam outside the ROI, thereby filtering out unnecessary scatter radiation.
ADVANCED IMAGE PROCESSOR Image processing algorithms help improve the image quality delivered to the physician.
The Launch
A published and peer-reviewed study has demonstrated a 75% radiation reduction to both patient and medical staff, using ControlRad’s technology. This ground-breaking device has recently been launched and is currently in limited release.
“The objective is to pressure test the product, the feature sets, our logistics, our service, and our training,” Bailliard said. “We’ve done a number of installations and are actually looking into having some installations in Atlanta. We’re in the process of talking with those teams.”
Feedback
Dr. Andrew Cappuccino in Niagara Falls suggested that not only was the radiation exposure to himself and to his patient drastically reduced, but he believes he saw an improvement in image quality as well. “It makes sense to us that there is an improvement in image quality because we’re reducing the amount of scatter radiation in the ROI, but we’ll do additional studies to validate that,” Bailliard noted. “Our objective was to reduce unnecessary x-ray radiation and not negatively impact image quality. What we’re finding is that there’s potentially a very strong improvement in image quality as well.”
Why Peachtree Corners?
Bailliard cited the convenient location, its proximity to Atlanta, as well as access to a critical mass of medical device talent. “The key to any business is to be able to attract the right people. Being nicely centralized in this area we have folks coming from Marietta, from down-town and from further north.” He also referred to the fact that the cost of doing business in Peachtree Corners is lower than in the Northeast where they were previously located and certainly lower than in Atlanta.
Perhaps my favorite reason they’ve chosen our city for their global headquarters: “We’re outside of the craziness of inside the perimeter, yet we’re in this Technology Park. That’s been the key,” Bailliard stated.
Looking to the Future
I wondered aloud if one day, patients would be able to seek out physicians who employ ControlRad’s technology.
“Actually, hospitals that are looking at our technology are looking to market to patients. Because there is a benefit to patients, we’re reducing the amount of unnecessary radiation exposure. That’s a good story,” Bailliard proclaimed.
Patrizia hails from Toronto, Canada where she earned an Honors B.A. in French and Italian studies at York University, and a B.Ed. at the University of Toronto. This trilingual former French teacher has called Georgia home since 1998. She and her family have enjoyed living, working and playing in Peachtree Corners since 2013.
Explore Gwinnett, the destination marketing organization for Gwinnett County, has announced the promotion of Lisa Anders from executive director to chief operating officer (COO). Since joining the organization in 1996, Anders has demonstrated outstanding leadership and has established a track record of developing partnerships essential to leading and expanding the evolving destination marketing organization. The creation and oversight of both the Gwinnett Film Commission and Gwinnett Creativity Fund are just two of her achievements.
“I am honored to step into the role of chief operating officer at Explore Gwinnett,” said Anders. “Over the past 13 years as executive director, I have had the privilege of witnessing remarkable growth for our destination. I am eager to enter this new chapter, and I’m looking forward to continuing to see how we expand.”
As COO, Anders will take on the additional responsibility of overseeing the Gwinnett Sports Commission. This division is dedicated to driving economic development through sports, managing a variety of events for youth, collegiate, amateur and professional athletic organizations. Ander’s innovative approach and extensive network of local and national connections will further support the commission’s overall mission to establish Gwinnett County as a premier sports destination.
“The Gwinnett Sports Commission team has excelled in attracting and managing a diverse array of sporting events over the past several years,” Anders added. “I look forward to working closely with this talented team to support their ongoing efforts and foster economic development for our community.”
Leroy Hite, founder of Cutting Edge Firewood, was honored with the Distinguished Alumni Award from Berry College in August
Berry College recently awarded its annual Distinguished Alumni Award for Entrepreneurial Spirit to Leroy Hite, founder of Cutting Edge Firewood (and Berry College graduate, class of 2008). The annual award recognizes and honors alumni who have demonstrated a range of positive entrepreneurial skills — including a commitment to turning a dream into a reality, the vision to create an enterprise, the courage to assume risks and the ability to make changes and take advantage of new opportunities.
“This award holds a special place in my heart, maybe more than any other I’ve ever received,” said Hite. “Being recognized by my alma mater is incredibly meaningful to me. My entrepreneurial journey began at Berry College. It’s where that initial spark was ignited, and honestly, I’m not sure I’d be where I am today without it. Berry nurtured my curiosity, drive and resilience — the key ingredients to entrepreneurship.”
Innovative entrepreneurship
Berry College professor and leader of the school’s Entrepreneurship Program, Dr. Paula Englis, said that Hite took every class she offered. And when those ran out, he did directed studies with her.
Hite was nominated by Berry alumni Alison Ritter, class of 1994. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp also supported Hite’s nomination.
“As a small business owner myself, I have strong appreciation for and recognize the perseverance it takes to build a business from the ground up,” said Kemp. “Leroy’s innovative approach to the firewood industry, focusing on product quality and customer service, mirrors the entrepreneurial spirit that has long driven Georgia’s economic success.”
The company
When Hite founded Cutting Edge Firewood in 2013, he created the world’s first luxury firewood and cooking wood company. He reinvented everything about the firewood industry, from how firewood is dried and stored to how it’s packaged, shipped and delivered. When the company began, it was just Leroy with a one truck and a trailer. Now Cutting Edge Firewood employs 40, stocks enough inventory to fill its 40,000-square-foot Peachtree Corners warehouse and ships wood to all 50 states.
The wide variety of wood from Cutting Edge undergoes a special drying process to ensure that it’s free from unwanted pests, mold or fungus and provides an unmatched clean and bright burn with pleasant aroma. Their focus on process and the use of hardwoods such as oak, hickory, cherry, apple, pecan and maple ensures their customers receive the highest quality firewood, cooking wood and pizza wood possible.
Cornerstone Christian Academy was recently awarded a Top Workplaces 2024 honor by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Recipients of this annual award are chosen solely from employee feedback gathered through a third-party survey administered by Energage, LLC. The anonymous survey uniquely measures multiple culture drivers that are critical to the success of any organization, including alignment, execution and connection.
In addition to their place on the 2024 list, Cornerstone was also ranked number one among small businesses and won a special award for company “Communication.”
“We were extremely humbled to hear that we were not only named on the list, but ranked first among small companies,” shared Colin Creel, headmaster at Cornerstone. “I am very thankful our staff has received this public validation of the amazing work that occurs here at Cornerstone. Our staff deserves all of the accolades they are receiving; Cornerstone is a very special place because of them.”
2024 marks the 14th year the AJC has recognized metro Atlanta businesses with the Top Workplaces award. And it’s the third time that Cornerstone has been named to the top spot in their category. This year’s recipients were selected from over 9,000 nominated companies and honored at an awards ceremony held at the Georgia Aquarium on August 14.