SeQual Names Pete Hart, Vernon Pertelle to Board of Directors
SAN DIEGO — SeQual Technologies Inc., which develops oxygen systems, has named Alex W. "Pete" Hart and Vernon R. Pertelle to its board of directors.
Hart has almost 30 years experience in banking, payment services and consumer finance, plus extensive board experience. He previously served as CEO of Advanta Corp. and was president and CEO of MasterCard International from 1988 to 1994. Pertelle has more than 20 years experience in the home medical equipment industry and most recently served as corporate director of respiratory care and HME services at Apria Healthcare.
Jim Bixby, CEO of SeQual, said the two join the board as the company prepares to enter a new phase of growth with the introduction of the new SeQual Eclipse™ Oxygen System. Developed over five years at a cost of $12 million, the concentrator is a system for home oxygen patients that offers both pulse and continuous flow to serve their stationary and ambulatory needs.
"SeQual is finalizing plans to launch the Eclipse in the next few months," said Bixby. "We are pleased to have Pete and Vernon join the board at this critical juncture. They have already provided valuable counsel on home medical equipment marketing, organizational growth and distribution. We are looking forward to their active participation in taking SeQual to the next level."
Hart is chairman of the board of Silicon Valley Bank and a director of Fair Isaac Corp. and Global Payments Inc. He is a director or advisor to many private companies, including US Encode, eHarmony.com, NoLie MRI, Paymetric and Medical Technologies International. He currently provides consulting services on distribution strategies for emerging technology companies.
Pertelle has authored 21 original publications, two books and more than 20 contributed editorials and reviews. In addition to his experience with Apria Healthcare, he served in several roles with the Kaiser Permanente medical care program, including senior consultant to the medical director for technology assessment and clinical practice guidelines. He recently joined the Tri City Healthcare District, San Diego, as senior director and assistant vice president.
SeQual, founded in 1991, offers a family of innovative products ranging from the 3 LPM continuous flow portable Eclipse to its compact, easy-to-use bedside 10 LPM unit. For more information, visit www.sequal.com.
This article originally appeared in the April 2006 issue of HME Business.