Start-Up

Name: K2M Inc.

Location: Leesburg

Funding: The company raised $21.5 million in June in a round led by Ferrer Freeman & Co., with the investment firm BETA participating. Two previous rounds of funding from angel investors brought in $20 million.

Big idea: K2M is developing spinal stabilization devices for a variety of spinal disorders including scoliosis, slipped discs and injuries caused by whiplash. Each device is designed with a surgeon's input. "We believe the surgeons are the ones in the OR [operating room] every day working on these patients, and they know what they need," said Eric Major, president, chief executive and co-founder. The products are made of materials including titanium and medical-grade plastics. "This is very precise instrumentation that goes in and stays in their whole life."

Where the idea was hatched: Major co-founded the company with John Kostuik, former chief of spine surgery at Johns Hopkins Medical Center and chairman and chief medical officer of K2M. "I was recognizing that the market had gotten to a point where a surgeon's input on design had been lost somewhere," Major said. "Big companies had forgotten the most important aspect of the business: surgeon input."

Customers: The company sells to hospitals and surgeons. Medical institution customers include the University of Massachusetts, Baylor University, Johns Hopkins University and Georgetown University.

Price: The price range for the products depends on the condition being treated, Major said. The devices can contribute $2,000 to $10,000 to the cost of a spinal procedure.

Founded: 2004

Who's in charge: Kostuik and Major.

Employees: K2M has 70 employees and is hiring.

Web site: http://www.k2m.com

Partners: None.

What the name means: "K2 is the most difficult mountain to climb," Major said. The name refers to the challenge of competing with huge established companies like Medtronic Inc., Johnson & Johnson and Abbott Laboratories. The "M" stands for medical.

Where will you be in five years? "I envision that we will be able to be one of the top three companies providing spinal instrumentation in the marketplace in the next five years," Major said.

-- Andrea Caumont