Ajay Piramal joins Smith & Nephew Board

RNS Number : 7766T

Smith & Nephew Plc

12 December 2011

 



Ajay Piramal joins Smith & Nephew Board as Non-Executive Director

12 December 2011

Smith & Nephew plc (LSE: SN, NYSE: SNN), the global medical technology business, today announces that Ajay Piramal will join the Board as a Non-Executive Director from 1 January 2012.

Mr Piramal is the Chairman of Piramal Group, the Mumbai-based conglomerate.  Piramal Group spans the healthcare, original drug discovery, glass manufacturing, financial services and real estate industries and operates across India, USA, Canada, UK and China, amongst other territories.  Its businesses include global healthcare and pharmaceutical company Piramal Healthcare Ltd andPiramal Glass Limited, both of which are listed on the National Stock Exchange of India and the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Mr Piramal is also Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Indian Institute of Technology (appointed 4^th March 2010), a Member of the Board of Dean's Advisors at the Harvard Business School (appointed 25^th July 2011) and Chairman of Pratham India, the largest non-governmental organisation in the Indian education sector, which assists 33 million children annually through its "Read India" campaign (appointed 24^th June 2002).

John Buchanan, Chairman of Smith & Nephew, commented:

"Ajay brings unique and highly valuable experience to Smith & Nephew, having built a world-class medical and industrial enterprise and he is one of India's most respected businessmen.  His industry and market knowledge, especially from working in locations such as India and China, will enrich the Board and help the executive team to deliver Smith & Nephew's growth plans for the emerging markets.  I am delighted he is joining our Board and very much look forward to working with him." 

In addition to his current roles, Mr Piramal has held a number of senior public service positions in India.  These include serving on the Hon'ble Prime Minister's Task Force on Pharmaceuticals & Knowledge-Based Industries (2002), the Hon'ble Prime Minister's Council for Trade & Industry (2003) and the Board of Trade for India (2002).  He was also a Member of the Central Board of Directors of the State Bank of India (1995-2007), India's largest commercial bank. 

He has held a number of global healthcare leadership positions, including membership of the World Economic Forum's Governors' Forum on Healthcare (2002-2007) and chairing the Drugs and Pharmaceutical Council of the National Council of Confederation of Indian Industry (2004-2009). 

Other than details of the directorships disclosed above, Mr Piramal has no further disclosures under paragraph 9.6.13 (1) to 9.6.13 (6) of the Listing Rules.

Enquiries

Investors

Phil Cowdy                                                Tel:   [phone]

Smith & Nephew

Media

Charles Reynolds                                     Tel:   [phone]

Smith & Nephew

Justine McIlroy                                          Tel:   [phone]

Brunswick - London

About Smith & Nephew

Smith & Nephew is a global medical technology business with global leadership positions in Orthopaedic Reconstruction, Advanced Wound Management, Sports Medicine, Trauma and Clinical Therapies. The Company has distribution channels, purchasing agents and buying entities in over 90 countries worldwide. Annual sales in 2010 were nearly $4.0 billion.

Smith & Nephew is dedicated to helping improve people's lives. The Company prides itself on the strength of its relationships with its surgeons and professional healthcare customers, with whom its name is synonymous with high standards of performance, innovation and trust.

Forward-looking Statements

This document may contain forward-looking statements that may or may not prove accurate. For example, statements regarding expected revenue growth and trading margins, market trends and our product pipeline are forward-looking statements. Phrases such as "aim", "plan", "intend", "anticipate", "well-placed", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "target", "consider" and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from what is expressed or implied by the statements. For Smith & Nephew, these factors include: economic and financial conditions in the markets we serve, especially those affecting health care providers, payors and customers; price levels for established and innovative medical devices; developments in medical technology; regulatory approvals, reimbursement decisions or other government actions; product defects or recalls; litigation relating to patent or other claims; legal compliance risks and related investigative, remedial or enforcement actions; strategic actions, including acquisitions and dispositions, our success in integrating acquired businesses, and disruption that may result from changes we make in our business plans or organisation to adapt to market developments; and numerous other matters that affect us or our markets, including those of a political, economic, business or competitive nature. Please refer to the documents that Smith & Nephew has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including Smith & Nephew's most recent annual report on Form 20-F, for a discussion of certain of these factors.

Any forward-looking statement is based on information available to Smith & Nephew as of the date of the statement. All written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to Smith & Nephew are qualified by this caution. Smith & Nephew does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in circumstances or in Smith & Nephew's expectations.

 

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