History

In 2010, a multidisciplinary team consisting of a surgeon, a biomedical engineer, a polymer engineer and business executive came together as Fellows at the University of Michigan Medical Innovation Center to identify unmet clinical needs, assess the scope of the problem, introduce solutions and understand the means to advance medical devices from concept to commercialization.  The spark of Brio Device began amidst their clinical observation period of the Fellowship. The team gathered data that reflected the need for products that would allow for increased success rates and improved patient outcomes during intubation. Brio Device, LLC formed in February, 2011.  Rather than the company starting from technology that had been developed, this company formed in response to the apparent clinical need and market demand, anticipating that the solution could be developed with the resources accessible to the team, and the entrepreneurial spirit of the team.  The company is now creating a series of devices to improve patient outcomes and elevate the success rates for clinicians who conduct the life-saving procedure of intubation.

Product development began after conducting dozens of interviews with clinicians, allowing the engineering team to learn first-hand the constraints and requirements for ideal solutions.  Rapid prototyping has taken place using Objet printers at the UM Prototype shop and the first products have begun to be used in resident training sessions with simulation mannequins, thus providing additional user feedback for the iterative product development cycle.

Brio has been funded to date by grants and awards.  The company is currently seeking seed funding to accelerate product and business development.