THOUSAND OAKS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ECA Medical (“ECA” or the “Company”), a leading designer and manufacturer of single-use instruments and surgery-ready solutions for the medical device industry, today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement under which Curewell Capital, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm focused exclusively on healthcare, will acquire a majority stake in the Company from LongueVue Capital. The partnership with Curewell provides significant capital to support ECA’s growth initiatives, including expanding its product portfolio, manufacturing facilities, and capabilities. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
ECA Medical Announces Strategic Investment from Curewell Capital
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partnershipECA MedicalCurewell CapitalLongueVue Capitalcapitaldefinitive agreementacquire
Founded in 1979, ECA is a leading vertically integrated supplier of surgery-ready solutions and systems, single-use procedural kits, and a variety of instruments including precision torque-limiting instruments for medical device original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The Company provides a comprehensive solution for OEMs from concept through design, validation, manufacturing, sterilization, and packaging. ECA has shipped more than 55 million instruments and 500,000 procedural kits worldwide and operates five FDA-registered, ISO 13485-certified facilities in California and Utah.
Lane Hale, President and Chief Executive Officer of ECA, and the existing management team will continue to lead the Company following the transaction. “For nearly 50 years, ECA has earned the trust of the world’s leading medical device companies by delivering high-quality instruments and surgery-ready systems that drive efficiency, reliability, and scalability across all settings of care,” said Hale. “The Company is at an exciting inflection point as we continue to see strong demand for our solutions from our OEM partners and healthcare providers. Curewell’s deep healthcare experience and commitment to investing in our people, capabilities, and future growth make them our ideal partner for this next chapter.”
“We are thrilled to partner with Lane and the ECA team. ECA has set the standard in single-use medical instrumentation, with accelerating growth in procedural kits and surgery-ready solutions that provide more flexibility in how and where procedures are performed,” said Michael Dal Bello, Managing Partner at Curewell Capital. “ECA’s depth of expertise, quality track record, and longstanding industry relationships position the Company exceptionally well to capitalize on long-term industry trends, and we are excited to help the team continue to scale to meet rapidly rising demand.”
“ECA has a remarkable history of helping advance medical device platforms, built on a culture of engineering excellence that has made it a trusted innovation partner in the industry,” added Ceron Rhee, Managing Partner at Curewell Capital. “For decades, the team has worked hand in hand with OEMs of all sizes to bring new solutions to surgeons, surgery centers, and patients. Supporting enabling technologies that enhance access, outcomes, and efficiency throughout the healthcare system is central to Curewell’s investment strategy, and we see a tremendous opportunity to build on ECA’s strong foundation.”
The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. Solomon Partners acted as exclusive financial advisor and Norton Rose Fulbright LLP served as legal advisor to ECA and LongueVue Capital. Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal advisor to Curewell Capital.
About ECA Medical
ECA Medical is a leading provider of single-use, surgery-ready procedural kits and precision torque-limiting instruments for orthopedic, spine, cardiovascular, and neurological device companies. Founded in 1979 and headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California, ECA serves OEM partners as a single-source solution across the product lifecycle, from design and regulatory support through molding, machining, assembly, packaging, sterilization, and fulfillment. For additional information, please visit www.ecamedical.com.
About Curewell Capital
Curewell Capital is a Los Angeles-based private equity firm focused on building industry-leading middle-market healthcare companies headquartered in North America. Drawing upon decades of investment and operating experience across healthcare services, pharmaceutical services, medical devices, and healthcare technology, Curewell seeks to partner with founders and management teams leading premier companies that improve patient outcomes, create efficiencies, and foster innovation. Curewell’s proprietary GRO™ framework is tailored to each company to drive long-term value through growth and operational excellence. For additional information, please visit www.curewellcapital.com.
Contacts
Jim Schultz
ECA Medical
(805) 990-6177
jschultz@ecamedical.com
Curewell Capital
(310) 361-1510
info@curewellcapital.com
Author
TH
TJ Halvorson
The De Angelis Group | Orthopedics This Week | MSK Innovations
Why This Matters
Two Perspectives
MBA Lens: Economic and industry impact
Curewell Capital's acquisition of a majority stake in ECA Medical provides significant capital to accelerate ECA's expansion of its single-use, surgery-ready solutions for medical device OEMs. This strategic partnership aims to bolster ECA's product portfolio, manufacturing capabilities, and market reach, capitalizing on increasing demand for efficient and scalable procedural kits. The investment positions ECA to strengthen its competitive advantage in the orthopedic, spine, cardiovascular, and neurological device markets.
- The acquisition by Curewell Capital, a healthcare-focused private equity firm, will fund ECA Medical's growth initiatives, including product and manufacturing expansion.
- ECA's strategy focuses on providing vertically integrated, surgery-ready solutions and single-use instruments to medical device OEMs, enhancing efficiency and scalability.
PhD Lens: Clinical and outcomes impact
ECA Medical, a designer and manufacturer of single-use instruments and surgery-ready solutions, will leverage Curewell Capital's investment to expand its offerings. The company specializes in precision torque-limiting instruments and procedural kits, aiming to enhance efficiency, reliability, and scalability in various care settings. This partnership supports the development and delivery of enabling technologies that improve access, outcomes, and operational efficiency within the healthcare system for orthopedic, spine, cardiovascular, and neurological procedures.
- ECA's technology includes single-use procedural kits and precision torque-limiting instruments, designed to improve surgical efficiency and reliability.
- The company's vertically integrated approach covers design, validation, manufacturing, sterilization, and packaging for medical device OEMs.
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Discussion
This is a fascinating development. In my practice we've seen similar outcomes with the revised protocol. The key differentiator seems to be patient selection criteria. Has anyone else noticed the correlation with BMI thresholds?
Great point. I'd push back slightly on the conclusion, the sample size in the cited study is too small to draw population-level inferences. That said, the directional signal is compelling and worth a larger RCT.
We implemented a similar approach last year. Early results are promising but we're still gathering 12-month follow-up data. Happy to share our protocol if anyone is interested.
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