The Bracco Group is an Italian multinational active in the healthcare sector with more than 3,300 employees worldwide, which operates in a variety of business areas. *

Diagnostic imaging Medical imaging is the technique and process of imaging the interior of a body for clinical analysis and medical intervention, as well as visual representation of the function of some organs or tissues (physiology). Medical imaging seeks to rev ...

, with products for

X-ray imaging Radiography is an imaging technique using X-rays, gamma rays, or similar ionizing radiation and non-ionizing radiation to view the internal form of an object. Applications of radiography include medical radiography ("diagnostic" and "therapeut ...

, including

computed tomography A computed tomography scan (CT scan; formerly called computed axial tomography scan or CAT scan) is a medical imaging technique used to obtain detailed internal images of the body. The personnel that perform CT scans are called radiographers ...

(CT),

magnetic resonance imaging Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio wave ...

(MRI),

ultrasound Ultrasound is sound waves with frequency, frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing range, hearing. Ultrasound is not different from "normal" (audible) sound in its physical properties, except that humans cannot hea ...

and

nuclear medicine Nuclear medicine or nucleology is a medical specialty involving the application of radioactive substances in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Nuclear imaging, in a sense, is "radiology done inside out" because it records radiation emitting ...

. * Contrast-agent injection systems and advanced medical devices. *Prescription and over-the-counter

pharmaceuticals A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and rel ...

, supplements, medical and

cosmetic Cosmetic may refer to: *Cosmetics, or make-up, substances to enhance the beauty of the human body, apart from simple cleaning *Cosmetic, an adjective describing beauty, aesthetics, or appearance, especially concerning the human body *Cosmetic, a t ...

devices developed and distributed in Italy. *Healthcare,

prevention Prevention may refer to: Health and medicine * Preventive healthcare, measures to prevent diseases or injuries rather than curing them or treating their symptoms General safety * Crime prevention, the attempt to reduce deter crime and crimi ...

diagnosis Diagnosis is the identification of the nature and cause of a certain phenomenon. Diagnosis is used in many different disciplines, with variations in the use of logic, analytics, and experience, to determine " cause and effect". In systems engin ...

and

rehabilitation Rehabilitation or Rehab may refer to: Health * Rehabilitation (neuropsychology), therapy to regain or improve neurocognitive function that has been lost or diminished * Rehabilitation (wildlife), treatment of injured wildlife so they can be retur ...

services through the CDI - Centro Diagnostico Italiano. Bracco has consolidated revenues of more than 1.1 billion euro, of which 75% from international sales. The Group is present in 100 countries and invests approximately 10% of its core diagnostic imaging revenues in research and innovation. In Italy Bracco is also a brand associated with a number of historic pharmaceutical products such as Cebion, Xamamina, Euclorina, the Alfa eye-drops line and the Friliver range of sport supplements. The Group Chairman and Chief Executive Officer is Diana Bracco. A

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

graduate from the

University of Pavia The University of Pavia ( it, Università degli Studi di Pavia, UNIPV or ''Università di Pavia''; la, Alma Ticinensis Universitas) is a university located in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy. There was evidence of teaching as early as 1361, making it one ...

, Diana Bracco is also Chairman of

Expo 2015 Expo 2015 was a World Expo hosted by Milan, Italy. It opened on May 1 at 10:00 CEST and closed on October 31. Milan hosted an exposition for the second time; the first was the 1906 Milan International. The Bureau International des Expositi ...

Spa, General Section Commissioner for the Italy Pavilion at Expo and

Confindustria The General Confederation of Italian Industry ( it, Confederazione generale dell'industria italiana), commonly known as Confindustria, is the Italy, Italian employers' federation and national chamber of commerce, founded in 1910. It groups togeth ...

Vice President for Research & Innovation. Decorated as a Cavaliere del Lavoro, she was President of Assolombarda and, before that, Chairman of Federchimica. In February 2001 she received an Honorary Doctor of Pharmacy degree from

. On January 12, 2015, Diana Bracco was "prosecuted on charges of tax evasion and embezzlement, crimes allegedly committed as chairman of the board of the pharmaceutical group Bracco Spa." In October 2016, she was given a two year suspended sentence for tax fraud and embezzlement. As of 2020, the group has a consolidated turnover of approximately 1.4 billion euros, of which 89% on foreign markets. It is present in 100 countries with 3,587 employees. The Bracco group has 1,800 patents, 7 research and development centers and 9 factories worldwide.

History

The company founded by Elio Bracco was established in 1927 in Milan with the name Società Italiana Prodotti E Merck, to produce, package and sell the chemical products of the German company E. Merck. It had just five employees. In 1934 Fulvio Bracco, Elio's son, officially joined the company which, the same year, began marketing Cebion, an innovative product based on vitamin C, recently discovered by the Hungarian biochemist

Albert Szent-Györgyi Albert Imre Szent-Györgyi de Nagyrápolt ( hu, nagyrápolti Szent-Györgyi Albert Imre; September 16, 1893 – October 22, 1986) was a Hungarian biochemist who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1937. He is credited with fi ...

. In 1962 Bracco researchers created the first contrast agent based on their original

research Research is "creativity, creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular att ...

: iodamide, a product with very high tolerability. On 17 March 1977 Diana Bracco, Fulvio's daughter, was appointed Bracco General Manager. In 1981 the company launched Iopamidol in Italy and Germany. In the second half of the 1980s, Bracco Spa became the leading international producer of non-ionic contrast agents. It also won a positive response and important results for other formulations, including the anti-tuberculosis drug pyrazinamide, of which Bracco is the leading world producer, which is included in the WHO list of essential

. In 1990, Bracco began a ten-year period of important growth. At international level, acquisitions and

joint ventures A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acces ...

enhanced the Group structure. In 1990 the Bracco Eisai

joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acces ...

was set up in Japan. In 1994 Bracco acquired Squibb Diagnostic, a company in the Bristol Myers Squibb group in the United States, which is still Bracco Imaging's largest market today. 1995 saw the integration of the three research centres in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

and

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...

focuses on the

and development of contrast agents for

radiology Radiology ( ) is the medical discipline that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide their treatment, within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiat ...

and

magnetic resonance Magnetic resonance is a process by which a physical excitation (resonance) is set up via magnetism. This process was used to develop magnetic resonance imaging and Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy technology. It is also being used to ...

, Bracco Research Geneva on ultrasound and Bracco Research USA Princeton on magnetic resonance and

. 1999 was a milestone year for the company: the Bracco family and the

Merck Group The Merck Group, branded and commonly known as Merck, is a German multinational science and technology company headquartered in Darmstadt, with about 60,000 employees and present in 66 countries. The group includes around 250 companies; the m ...

reached an agreement under which Bracco bought Merck's 50% stake in the Group's diagnostic and pharmaceuticals operations. In 2001, the Bracco Group acquired ACIST Medical Systems, a US company based in

Eden Prairie, Minnesota Eden Prairie is a city southwest of downtown Minneapolis in Hennepin County and the 16th-largest city in the State of Minnesota, United States. As of the 2020 census, it has a population of 64,198. The city is adjacent to the north bank of th ...

, a suburb of

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, active in advanced contrast-agent management and injection systems. Meanwhile, the Group's international growth continued, with more offices opening around the world. Since 2002 Bracco has had a direct presence in China with Bracco Sine Pharmaceutical Corp. Ltd. in Shanghai. In 2008 it acquired E-Z-EM, a leading company in the

sector. In 2010 Bracco entered

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

and

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. In 2011 Bracco Imaging acquired Swiss Medical Care (now Bracco Injeneering) and the Nycomed production plants in Singen (Germany). In 2012 it completed the acquisitions of Justesa in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, Mexico and

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. "From Neresine to Milan. Memories of the Italian Entrepreneur Fulvio Bracco" edited by Bracco Foundation, year 2012

Gruppo Companies

*Bracco S.p.A. -

(Italy) *Bracco Imaging S.p.A. -

(Italy) *Bracco Imaging Italia S.p.A.- Italia-

(Italy) *SPIN S.p.A. -

Torviscosa Torviscosa ( fur, Tor di Zuin, locally ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Udine in the Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about northwest of Trieste and about south of Udine. The municipality of Torviscosa contains ...

(Italy) *Centro Diagnostico Italiano S.p.A. -

(Italy) *Bracco Imaging Europe BV - (

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

) *Bracco Imaging Europe BV - (Belgium) *Bracco Suisse S.A. (Switzerland) *Bracco International BV (

) *Bracco Imaging Polska- (

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

) *Bracco Imaging Czech- (

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

) *Bracco Imaging Deutschland GmbH- (Germany) *Bracco Imaging BV- (France) *Bracco UK Ltd. (United Kingdom) *Bracco Oesterreich GmbH (Austria) *Bracco Imaging France SAS (France) *Bracco Imaging Scandinavia AB (Sweden) *Bracco Imaging Baltics (

) *ACIST Europe B.V (

) *BIPSO - (Germany) *Bracco Imaging Slovakia- (

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

) *Bracco Injeneering - (

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

) *Bracco Research U.S.A. Inc.- (United States) *Bracco Diagnostics Inc. - (United States) *ACIST Medical Systems, Inc - (United States) *E-Z-EM Canada (Bracco Imaging Canada) - (Canada) *Bracco Imaging do Brasil importaçao e distribuçao de medicamentos L.tda - (

Brasil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area an ...

) *Justesa Imagen Mexicana S.A. de C.V- (Mexico) *Bracco Diagnostics Asia, Pty- (

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

) *Bracco International BV- - (China) *Bracco Eisai Co. Ltd.- (Japan) *Shanghai Bracco Sine Pharmaceutical Corp. Ltd. (China) *Bracco Far East Ltd.- (China) *Bracco Far East Ltd. – (

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

) *Bracco Imaging Korea Ltd. – (

) *ACIST Asia Pte Ltd – (

)

References

{{Authority control Multinational companies headquartered in Italy Chemical companies of Italy Pharmaceutical companies of Italy Pharmaceutical companies established in 1927 Manufacturing companies based in Milan Italian companies established in 1927 Italian brands