Baxter's History of Innovation
Founded in 1931 as the first manufacturer of commercially prepared intravenous (IV) solutions in glass bottles, Baxter has a long history of innovation. Other company firsts include the first commercially manufactured artificial kidney, enabling life-saving dialysis for people with kidney disease; the first plastic blood-collection and IV solution containers; the first concentrated Factor VIII clotting factor for people with hemophilia; the first ambulatory dialysis system, and many others.
See the Milestones page for more information about Baxter's history of innovation.
Continued research and development (R&D) is essential to Baxter's future growth. Principal strategic focus areas include recombinant and plasma-based therapeutics, adult stem-cell therapies, biosurgery products, small molecule drugs, enhanced medication delivery packaging systems, improved solutions and devices for kidney dialysis, drug formulation technologies and sterilization technologies.
Baxter R&D activities are performed at R&D centers around the world (see map), including Baxter facilities in Austria, Belgium, France, Japan and the United States. Baxter supplements its own R&D efforts by acquiring various technologies and entering into development agreements with third parties. For example, Baxter is involved in two partnerships aimed at developing new therapies to reduce the frequency of injections required to treat chronic blood-clotting disorders.
