The world of widex · 3 Science and health 6 From chipmunk to fish 16 Better health, better hearing...

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ListenThe world of widex

of thePowerChiP

2 Listen – The world of widex2 Listen – The world of widex

managerial editorPeter hentze [email protected]

editor-in-chiefJeanette [email protected]

WritersAndrew [email protected] [email protected]

art directorlone [email protected]

graphic designermarianne Kim [email protected]

translationlærke [email protected]

3

Science and health 6 Fromchipmunktofish16 Betterhealth,betterhearing48 Pumpdownthevolume56 Ifmusicbethefoodofloveplayon

trendS 8 Hearingaidshitthecatwalk

technology 12 Awirelessworld26 Thepowerofthechip38 WidexBABY440–thebeststartinlife42 Quality=Reliability 52 Extendableears–makingtheinaudible audibleagain

reSearch & development 18 Thescienceofhearingaids20 WidexNordicSeminar

Society 22 Shakentothecore29 HelpingmarginalisedchildreninBrazil 60 Canyouhearit?

Widex around the World25 Countryprofile:Belgium58 MadeinJapanpeople30 Theadventuresofabusinessman

BuSineSS neWS 37 WidexwinsDanishEntrepreneurof theYear2009prize54 NewheadquartersinRussia64 Widexestablishesnewsubsidiaries

profeSSional partnerS62 JosephE.Bertin–Asmallinstitute withgreatstrength

corporate neWS44 Greenisnotjustacolour

SponSorShipS65 Campaigntohelptheelderlyin HongKong 65 2009WidexSportsmanand SportswomanoftheYear

Listen

Listen – The world of widex

5Listen – The world of widex

ediToriAl

deAr reAderS

WelcometothesecondissueofListen.Theaimofthismagazineistoofferourmanydispensers,partnersandcustomersworld-wideaninsightintoWidex,aswellasprovidinganinformativelookintoourexpertiseabout-asthetitlesuggests-hearing.

Theglobalfinancialcrisishasbeenoneverybody’slipsduringthepastyear–thecrisishascreatedturbulenceinsocietygenerallyandnaturallythishasalsoaffectedthehearingaidindustry.

Asafamily-ownedcompany,Widexenjoystheprivilegeofbeinglesssensitivethanothercompaniestothefluctuationsofthesharemarketandeconomicdownturns.Thisgivesastabilitythatbenefitsouremployees,customersandpartnersandmeansthatweareinapositiontocontinuepursuingthestrategythatwealwayshave:organicgrowththroughlong-terminvestinginresearchanddevelopment.

ThisstrategymeansthatyetagainwecandelivernewproductsthatemphasiseWidex’innovativeabilities.Inthisissue,forexam-ple,youcanreadaboutourownrevolutionarywirelesstechnologyandournewhearingaiddesignedspecificallyforbabies.

TheabilityofWidextothinkandinvestinthelong-termisalsoreflectedinanotherhistoricstepforthecompany,namelythecon-structionofournewheadquartersinAlleroed,northofCopenhagen.Ournewbuildingisnotjustmodern,stylishandfunctional,butisalsodesignedwiththeenvironmentinmindandtakesWidexintothefutureinstyle.

WehopethatyouenjoythisglimpseintotheworldofWidex–andgoodreading!

JanTøpholmCEO

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–THEEARSTORY


ScieNce & heAlTh

WhenwereadaboutChinesepaleontologistsdiggingupafossilisedchipmunkthatcould“helptoexplainhowhumanhearingevolved”,itgotusthinking.Wherehadtheearcomefrom–andwherewasitgoing?

320millionyearsagotheearliestformsoflifemayhavebreathedthroughtheirearsastheycrawledoutoftheprimor-dialsoupaccordingtoscientistsinSweden.

Fastforwardtoa123million-year-oldfossilisedmammalre-centlyunearthedinLiaoningProvince,China.Thisfossilcouldbethelinkthatexplainshowthethreebonesofthemamma-lianmiddleearbecameseparatedfromthejawhingetoformacomplexhearingsystem.

AccordingtoZhe-XiLuo,acuratorattheCarnegieMuseumofNaturalHistory,Pittsburg,“Whatismostsurprising,andthusscientificallyinteresting,istheanimal’sinnerear.”

Oncewegotourears,evolutiondidnotstopthere.AstudybyanthropologistJohnHawksclaimsthathearingrelatedgeneshaveevolvedovertheveryrecentpast–uptoonly2-3,000yearsago.Theseadaptations,hebelieves,haveledtodevelop-mentsinourlanguageandtheychallengereceivedwisdomthatthewayhumansnowtalkdevelopedfully50,000yearsago.

Looking into the crystaL baLLEvolutioncontinues,butthebiggestfuturechangesforourearsmaynotbegeneticbutman-made.OneofWidex’‘inno-vationgurus’,MortenNordahn,recentlylookedintohiscrystalball.

“Bytheyear2020,technologywillbemuchmoreintegratedwiththehumanbody.Theinternetwillbeubiquitous,withalldeviceslinkedtotheweb.Thismeansthatmobilephones,watchesandhearingaidswillbeabletoexchangeandprocessinformation,”claimsMortenNordahn.“Thesurfaceofthehear-ingaidswillbenano-coated,flexiblescreensthatarecapableofchangingcolourbasedonmood,ortoblendinwiththesurroundings.”

“Ohandbytheway,theywon tbecalledhearingaidsany-morebutintegratedAssistiveCommunicationSystemsoriACSs,”heconcludes.

Fact or Fiction?Sometimeswiththeseforecastsit’shardtotellsciencefactfromsciencefiction–especiallywhentheyseemtomergetogether.Onesuchfuturewasreportedina2009WallStreetJournalarticle‘CanATinyFishSaveYourEars?’Thisiseerilyreminiscentofsci-ficlassicTheHitchHiker sGuidetotheGal-axywheretheBabelFishisinsertedintotheearand“simulta-neouslytranslatesfromonespokenlanguagetoanother.”

Butthisisreal.AnAmericanresearchteamhasbeenlookingatzebrafish.Theyareabletoregeneratetheirdamagedhaircells–unlikethehaircellsinourears.Thesescientistsarelookingathowtoapplythatregenerativepropertytoourears–thoughtheyadmitanycureisatleast20yearsaway.

However,youdonothavetobeascientisttoplaythepredic-tiongame.Ourfavouritewasmadeby‘Ed’fromOregonandpostedonaMySpaceforum.

“Myhighlyscientificguessisthathumanswillhaveskinnylittleunder-developedlegsattachedtobigfatrears,becausetheywon’tbeneededinafardistantXboxworld.Theirleftearwillbetwicethesizeoftheirrightinordertoholdalltheircommu-nicationdevices…..”

Wehopeyou’retakingnotesMorten.

SourceS

Brazeau and Ahlberg, “Tetrapod-like middle ear architecture in a Devonian fish”, Nature 439, January 19th, 2006

Hawks J. et al, “Recent acceleration of human adaptive evolution”, PNAS, December 26th, 2007

Owens K. N., “Identification of Genetic and Chemical Modulators of Zebrafish Mechanosensory Hair Cell Death”, University of Washing-ton, Seattle (and others), 2008

8 Listen – The world of widex

TreNdS


HEARING AIDS HIT THE CAtwALK

Fashionisapowerfultoolforsocialchange.AuniquepartnershipbetweenWidexand

PortuguesedesignerAndreiaLobatoaimsatchangingpeople’sperceptionofhearingaids.



TreNdS

TheshowtookplaceinOctober2009inthecustombuildingofthecityofPortoinPortugal.High-stepping,long-leggedmodelsstrolleddownthecatwalkdisplayinghearingaidsfromtheWidexPassion440series.

Theaimoftheinitiativewastobreakdownprejudicesabouthearinglossandhearingaids.AndreiaLobatoexplainsthis“al-lianceaimstoputanendtoexistingstereotypesabouthear-ingloss,andtoshowthathearingaids,likeglasses,canandshouldbeseenmoreandmoreasfashionaccessories”.

Passion440isoneoftheworld’ssmallestreceiver-in-canalhearingaids,andhasanelegantdesignthatmatchedtheglamorousdressescreatedbyLobatoperfectly.ThisisoneofthereasonswhythedesignerchoseWidex:“Iacceptedtopar-ticipateinthisinitiativeafterIgottoknowthestylishdesignofWidexhearingaids,whichareverydiscreetandavailableinmultiplecolours.Thisallowedmetocombinethecolourofthehearingaidwiththecolourofeachdress”.

AndreiaLobatoandRitaPereiraReadmore

www.andreia-lobato.com

RitaPereira(above),apopularPortugueseactress,alsopar-ticipatedintheshow.SheworealimitededitionofPassion440decoratedwithSwarovskicrystals.Theactressstressedthat“itisapleasuretohelpbreakingstereotypesandinformpeopleinagoodwayabouttheproblemofhearingloss,whichaffectstenpercentofthepopulation”.

Theevent,attendedby400participants,receivedsubstantialmediacoverage,includingbeingfeaturedontheTVprogramPraçadaAlegria,showneverymorningononeofthemainPortuguesepublicchannels.

ThePassion440wornbythemodelsreceivedtheRedDotDesignAward2009–oneofthemostprestigiousdesignawardsintheworld.TheawardcelebratedPassionforanintelligentcombina-tionofmoderntechnologyandergonomicdesign.

www.widex.com/products/passion440

Canhearingaidsbeafashionstatement?AccordingtoAndreiaLobatoyes.ForherSpringandSummercollection2010,theyoungandupcomingfashiondesignerteamedupwithWidextodeliveraspectacularshowusingWidexhearingaidsasfashionaccessories.


TechNology

A wireLess worldThelatestWidexproductsarethefirsttofeatureuniqueandrevolutionarywirelesstechnology.Butnotjustanytechnology.

Mostofustakewirelesstechnologyforgrantedeverydaywhenusingourmobilephones,computersoreventelevisionremotecontrols.Butforhearingaidusers,suchtechnologyisrelativelynew.

Withtherecentsuccessfullaunchofournewhigh-endhear-ingaid,CLEAR440,aswellasourassistivelisteningdevices(DEX),Widexhasnowenteredthewirelessworldinstyle.Notonlycanusersenjoyinstantcommunicationbetweentwohearingaids,buttheycanalsoenjoyeasyaccesstotelevision,phonesandmusic,aswellaseasy,wirelessfitting.Allthankstorevolutionarynewwirelesstechnology,WidexLink.

UniqUe technoLogyThedevelopmentofWidexLinkhasbeenoneofthelargestdevelopmentprojectsinWidex’history.Increatingwireless

technology,itwasvitaltofindasolutionthatwasrightforbothWidexandhearingaidusers.AccordingtoMikeRank,aResearchandDevelopmentmanageratWidex,thismeantcomingupwithourowntechnology,astherewerenotanyavailabletechnologiesgoodenough“tobetakendownfromtheshelf.Wedothingsproperlyandifwecannotfindagoodsolutionorsomethingwearehappywith,wetendtodoitourownway,”hesays.

Onemajorproblemwithexistingwirelesstechnologiesisthattheyarenotreallydesignedforhearingaiduse.ThomasKyhn,anelectro-acousticengineerintheAudiologicalResearchandCommunicationteamatWidex,saysoneofthemainproblemsistodowithpowersupply.“Theexistingdigitalwirelesstech-nologieshavebeendevelopedfortelephoneordatacommu-nication.Intheseapplications,youhaveaccesstomuchlarger


TechNology

powersourcesthanyouhaveinahearingaid.Byusingtheexistingwirelesstechnologiesyouwouldthereforedrainyourhearingaidbatteryinamatterofhours–notdays.”

Anotherissuethedevelopershadtoconsiderwasthelengthofdelaywhentransmittingdatawirelessly.Basically,ifthereistoomuchdelaybetweensignals,thenthesignalmayechoorsounddistorted.Forexample,standardBluetoothtechnologythatmostofusknowfromourmobilephoneshas,accordingtoThomasKyhn,“atransmissiondelayof150ms(millisec-onds).Thismaynotsoundmuchbutit“createsanunaccept-ableechobetweendirectacousticsoundandthetransmittedsound.”

Thechallengethen,wastoensurehearingaiduserswouldnoticenodetectabledelayinspeech,orinsoundsfromtheirassistivelisteningdevicessuchaswhenwatchingtelevisionforexample.“Specialattentionandeffortwasputintodevelopingawirelesssystemwhichwassofastthatitwouldnotsufferfromsignaldelaywhichwouldcreatedistortionorechoef-fects,”saysThomasKhyn.

compressionTheanswerwastodevelopanewwayinwhichtocompressdata;thatis,makealltheinformationbeingsentandreceivedtakeupaslittlespaceaspossiblewhilestillretainingthesoundquality.DownloadingyourentireCDcollectionontoaniPodisofcourseaformofcompressionmostofusarefamiliarwith.Todothis,what’sknownasadigitalaudiocodecisemployed.

codecisshortforencoder/decoderandmeansthatdatacanbetransmittedspeedilyandusinglittlestoragespace.Basi-cally,acodecconvertsananaloguesignal(thesoundwehear,forexample)toadigitalsignal(anumericalrepresentationofthatsound).Anotheridenticalcodecthenconvertsthatbackintoananaloguesignal.

AsThomasKyhnexplains,“Theaudiocodeciswheredigitalinformationisreducedorcompressedtotakeupaslittlespaceaspossibleandtherebyreachitsdestinationasfastaspos-sible.Digitalaudiodatatakesupalotofspaceandtimewhenyoueitherwanttostoreit-onaCD-ROMforexample,orifyouwanttodownloadaudiotoyourlaptop.Inhearingaidusewecannotaccepttowaitalongtimeforthedigitalaudiotoreachthehearingaid,norcanweofferahugestoragemediuminsuchatinyspace,”hesays.

SpeedandlackofdelaythenwereprerequisitesandWidexengineersthereforedecidedtodeveloptheirownnewcodecratherthanuseexistingorstandardhardware.MikeRanksayscompressionrateslikethoseindigitalaudiodevicessuchasmp3playersforexample,aretooslow.“Justtakingastandardcodeclikemp3,ifyoudothat,yougetadelayof40mswhichiswaytoomuch.Thedelayisverylongformp3’s.That’swhywedecidedtodoourown.Wewantedtomakeacodecthat,withthehearingaid,hadacompletedelayoflessthan10ms.”

robUst and error-FreeHowever,noneofthistechnologywouldbeterriblyusefulifitwaseasilypronetointerferenceordrop-outs;indeed,weallknowhowannoyingitiswhen,forexample,ourmobilephonesuddenlydisappearsfromrange.Tothisend,attentionwaspaidtomakingWidexLinkasrobustaspossible.AccordingtoThomasKyhn,interferenceisavoidedbyusingasystemthatmonitorsanyerrorsinthedata.“Ourcodecisdesignedinawaywhichistoleranttodataerrorsanddrop-outs.Thisisinterestingwhenthetransmitterandthereceiverstarttogetoutofreach,orradionoisefromotherdevicesinterferes,”heexplains.

“Iftheerrorrategetstoohigh,itcanjumptoanewradiofrequencywhichmighthavelessradionoiseinterference,or(ifthisisnothelping)itfadesoutwithoutanyclicks,noiseburstsorotherartefactsknownfromotherdigitalradiosystems.”

Wall

22.5 m

Original sound

Reflected sound

Ittakes150msforsoundtotraveltheequivalentof45metres.


TechNology

Thisformoferrordetectionalsohelpswhen,forexample,ahearingaiduserwhoiswatchingtelevisionmovesoutofrange.WidexLinkensuresa‘gradualdegradation’ofthesignal,abitlikehearingaradiostationgoslightlyofftune.

Oneofthereasonsforerrordetection,accordingtoMikeRank,“isthatwhenyougotothelimit,forexamplewhentheTV-DEXisoutofrange,youneedtobeabletodetectwhenyoucometothatsoyoucanhaveagracefuldegradation.Whenyougetoutofrange,thenitdetectsitanditfadesdownnicely.”

easy and convenientSomuchforthetechnology;howdoesallthistranslateforhearingaidprofessionalsandusers?Well,withthenewCLEAR™440series,thehearingaidscommunicatewitheachotherinstantlyandconstantly.ThismeanshighqualitysoundcanbeeffortlesslysynchronisedbetweenthemanduserscanmakethemostofCLEAR440’smanyfeaturesfromasophis-ticatedremotecontrol.Andbecausefittingisnowcompletelywireless,hearingaiduserscanbenefitfromeasierandmoreconvenientfitting.

Asforprofessionals,theintroductionofWidexLinkmeetsthelongsought-afterdemandforeasierfitting.ThomasKyhnexplains,“BeforewestartedtheCLEAR440project,weintervieweddispensersfromallovertheworld.Andtheyallansweredwithone:‘Giveusastandardfittingtool!”Thecableandfittingshoehasslehasbecomeahugeproblemforhearingaidprofessionalsandtheyurgedustodevelopanindustry

standardwirelessfittingtool.ThereforeWidexhasenteredintocollaborationwithleadinghearingaidmanufacturerstodevelopnEARcombasedonthewell-establishedNOAHlink.”

intUitive designWiththeassistivelisteningdevices,itwasdecidedearlyontofocusonusability.AccordingtoThomasKyhn,therewasgreatroomforimprovementinthedesignofhearingaidremotecontrolsandaccessoriessuchasassistivelisteningdevices.Re-searchshowedthatthiswassomethingbothprofessionalsandusersalikerealised.“Dispenserswereincreasinglytroubledwithsupportfordeviceswithhopelessuserinterfaces–evenproductreturns.Productsthatevenhearingaidprofessionalshadproblemsunderstandingindetail,”explainsThomasKyhn.

“Widextookauniqueapproachtothishugeproblemanddevelopedarangeofwirelessassistivelisteningdeviceswithfocusoneaseofuse.Insteadofdesigningmulti-featurede-vices,asweseefromotherleadingmanufacturers,wefocusedonthespecificapplicationanddesignedasolutionforeachsituation.”

ThedesignofeachofthethreeDEXdevices–remote,TVandmobile–reflectstheattentionpaidtocreatinganintuitiveuserinterfacefamiliarfromothertechnologies.“Weputalotofef-fortintodesigning‘recognition’intotheproductstomaximisetheuser’sunderstandingofhowtouseit,”saysThomasKyhn.

into the FUtUreWhileWidexmayhavetakengoodtimetojointhewirelessrevolution,ithasbeenworththewait.“WidexLinkisaheadofalltheexistingwirelesstechnologiesweseefromotherlead-inghearingaidmanufacturers,”saysThomasKyhn.“Itwilltakealongtimebeforeourcolleaguesinthebusinesswillcatchup.Whenthisissaid–weliveinaworldwhichconstantlyevolves,andtherewillcomeatimewhereweneedtotakenewmea-surestokeepupandgrabnewopportunities.”

TV-DEX


TechNology

how does widexLinK CoMPress dAtA? thomas Kyhn explains:to reduce the amount of audio data we use knowledge about three important elements:

First,inasoundimagethereareelementsofdominantsoundsandsoundswhichareinaudibletothehumanear.Knowingexactlyhowandwhensoundsaredrowned,ormasked,bymoredominantsoundsgivesusimportantinformationabouthowtoremovesoundelementswhichcannotbeheardanywayduetothepresenceofothersounds.Thisseriouslyreducestheamountofaudiodataweneedtotransfer.

Second,knowledgeaboutthecharacteristicorparticularbuildingblocksofsoundcanhelpustomapthesoundimageandreduceinformationtoonlysendthe“coordinates”oftheaudiolandscape.

Inotherwords:ifyouhavethesamebookofrecipesatthetrans-mitterasyouhaveatthereceiver,youonlyneedtotransmitthepagenumberstocooktwosimilarmeals.

Andthirdly,audioishighlyredundant,whichmeansthattherearealotofrepeatingpatternsinaudio.Knowledgeabouttheserepeatingpatternscangiveusimportanttoolstoreducetheamountofdataevenmore.Backtotheanalogyaboutcookingameal:thecookbooksaysboileightpotatoes–notonepotatoattimeandrepeatingeighttimes!

WidexLink


BeTTer heALth, BeTTer heAring?


ScieNce & heAlTh

Didwehearthatright?Redwine,cheese,grapesandberriescouldhelpprotectusfromhearingloss.Anyoneforcheeseandwine?

It’sbeenknownforawhilethattherearethingsyoucandotoprotectyourhearingandreducethedegenerativeeffectsthatcausehearingimpairment.Butwhat’sthelatestresearchtellingus?

AccordingtoKathleenCampbell,PhD,directorofaudiologyresearchatSouthernIllinoisUniversitySchoolofMedicine,“AdietrichinseleniumandvitaminsA,C,andEhasbeenshowntoprotectratsandguineapigsfromhearinglossandtolessenthedamagecausedbyloudnoises.Additionalanimalresearchisprobingthepotentialofmagnesiumsupplements,resvera-trol,(that’stheantioxidantsfoundingrapes,redwine,andberries),andanelementofproteinfoundincheeseandyogurt,althoughit’stoosoontomakedietaryrecommendationsforpeople.”

Campbellhasalongbackgroundintheprofession.SheranaudiologyservicesintheCanadianRockiesinthe1970sandauditoryelectrophysiologyattheUniversityofIowa.Herpre-liminaryresearchfindingssuggestthatmagnesiummayhelpminimisethepotentialforpermanentdamageiftakenwithintwohoursofasuddenhearinglossfrominfectionorexposuretoloudnoise.

Low-Fat dietCampbell’sworkisthelatestadditiontothebetterdietequalsbetterhearingargument.AquarterofacenturyagotheNewYorkTimeswasreportingthatlowfatdietscouldhelpstaveoffagerelatedhearingimpairment.

Theirjournalistreported:“Severalstudieshavesuggestedthatbyswitchingtoalow-fatdiet……hearinglosscanbecurbedandperhapsevenreversed.Inalong-termstudyinFinland,morethan4,000participantsplacedonafat-controlleddietforsixyearshadfewerheartattacksandsuperiorhearingacuitythanthosewhocontinuedtoeatahigh-fatdiet.Whenthedietsofthetwogroupswerereversed,thegroupnowonthehigh-fatdietexperiencedhearinglosses,whilehearingimprovedinthelow-fatdietgroup.”

other theoriesSincethisstudy,othershaveindicatedthateithersupplementsordietsrichinvariousfoodscouldhelpustohangontoourhearinglonger.Forinstance,scientistsinFloridafoundthatfoodshighinantioxidants(prunesandraisinsforinstanceplusvitaminE)couldpreventandperhapstreatnoiseinducedhearingloss.

Othershavelookedatzincdeficiencyasacontributoryfactortohearingloss.A2009studysaysfolate-richfoodscouldbegoodforourhearingbutcontradictsotherreceivedwisdoms.

Menover60yearsofagewhoeatfolates(leafyvegetables,asparagus,lettuce,driedorfreshbeansandpeas,fortifiedcereals,sunflowerseedsandliver)couldlessentheirriskofhearinglossbyupto20%.Butthesamestudyfoundtherewerenobenefitsfromantioxidants.

So,asever,thescienceiscontradictory.Thebestadvicewouldseemtobetoliveashealthyalifestyleaspossible,eatabal-anced,low-fatdietandnotsmoke.Thejuryisstilloutonthewineandcheese.

SourceS

Rosen et al., “Dietary prevention of hearing loss”, Acta Otolaryngol, 1970

Henderson, D, “Noise Induced Hearing Loss Part A; Part B, Video Tape Transcripts”, AuD Distance Learning Program, University Florida, 2002

Hoeve L. J. et al., European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, November 16th, 2004

Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO, 2009 American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF), San Diego, CA.


The sCienCe of heAriNg AidSTheEuropeandivisionofWidex’researchlabora-tory,theOfficeofResearchinClinicalAmplification(ORCA)wasofficiallyopenedinStockholm,Sweden,inMarch2007.ItcomplementsitssisterorganisationORCAUSAinChicago.

ThedirectorofORCAEuropeisKarolinaSmeds,PhD,whodescribestheorganisation’sworkandobjectives.

q: what is the role of orca europe?

a: Ourmissionistoundertakeandcommunicateresearchprojects.Theseincludethedevelopmentandevaluationofgainprescriptionsandhearingaidpropertiesthataffecttheirfittingsuchasnoisereductionandgainacclimatisation.

Ourjobistoconductclinicalresearchinareasrelevantforhearingaidusers.Wedobasicclinicalresearchthatisnotnec-essarilyrelatedtoWidexproducts.Thisresearchispresentedatconferencesandpublishedinjournals.Wealsodoevalu-ationsofWidexproducts.Thesecanresultinpresentationsandbepublished,buttheycanalsobethesubjectofpurelyinternalreportsusedinproductdevelopment.

Fromlefttoright:JosefinaLarsson,KarolinaSmeds,NiklasBergmanandSofiaHertzman.Photographer:ErikHolmberg


reSeArch & develoPmeNT

q: why was orca europe set up when orca Usa was al-ready in existence?

a: Thetwogroupshaveslightlydifferentfocuses.Withtwogroupleaders,indifferentpartsoftheworld,withslightlydif-ferentbackgrounds,itispossibletoperformalargerrangeofstudiesandtopresenttheresultstoabiggeraudience.

q: what projects have you been working on?

a:Thereareanumberofprojectsrelatedtonoisereductionalgorithmsinhearingaids.Initially,wehavebeenworkingonwaystoillustratehownoisereductionalgorithmsfromvarioushearingaidmanufacturersperforminrealisticmeasurementsituations.Currently,twostudentsareevaluatingobjectivemeasuresthatmightbeusedtoquantifytheperceptualeffectofanoisereductionalgorithm.Anumberoftheseareimple-mentedandevaluatedusinghearing-impairedlistenersunderlaboratoryconditions.Nextyear,wewillperformanevaluationofnoisereductionalgorithmsusedinWidexhearingaids.

Otherprojectsincludeacombinedlaboratoryandfieldstudywherehearing-impairedparticipantsevaluatedhowmuchgaintheypreferredforlow-levelsounds.Wehavealsodocumentedhowmuchgainvarioushearingaidsareprovidingforasmallnumberof“typical”audiograms.AndwehaveevaluatedanumberofWidexhearingaids.

q: what have been the major benefits derived from this work?

a: ORCAhascontributedtoWidex’workintheareasofmethodologicaldevelopment,forinstance,illustratinghowthenoisereductionalgorithmsworkandhowtoevaluatetheeffects.Wehavealsohelpedtoraisevisibilityamongclinicalpractitionersandinthescientificcommunity,bridgingthegapbetweenacademicresearchandcompanyR&D,anddocu-mentingourfindings.

ThefactthatWidexhastwoORCAgroups,wheresubstantialtimecanbespentonresearchandvalidation,illustratesitsambitiontocontinueintheforefrontoftechnologicaldevelop-ment.Itemphasisesthatthisdevelopmentshouldbebacked

upbyresearchdata.Foraudiologistswhoarestrivingtowardsevidence-basedpractice,itiscrucialthatclinicalevidenceforfeaturesandtreatmentsiscompiled.

q: what job were you doing before joining orca europe?

a:IwasworkingasanengineerattheManillaSchoolfordeafchildreninStockholmandlecturingattheAudiologyprogrammeattheKarolinskaInstitute.AttheinstituteIwasresponsiblefortechnicalcoursessuchasphysics,signalsandsystems,psychoacoustics,hearingaidtechnologyandfitting.

q: what do you like about running orca europe?

a:Ireallyappreciateapostwhereresearchisthemainactivity.WhenIacceptedthepositionofdirector,Ilikedtheprospectofcreatingagoodresearchgroupandbeingabletocontributetothatgroup’sprofile.Continuingresearchwhilstlearningaboutthehearingaidindustryappealstome.

InadditiontoKarolinaSmeds,theORCAEuropeteamincludesthreefull-timeteammembers.Thegroup’sexpertiseismainlyinclinicalresearchregardinghearingaidfittingforadultsandphonetics.

Italsoworkswithstudentsandisinclosecontactwithacademicdepartmentsthroughstudentsupervisionandlecturing.

ForfurtherinformationaboutORCAEuropevisitwww.orca-eu.info





widex nordiC seMinArEverysecondyearWidexinvitesaudiologists,ENTdoctorsandotheraudiologicalspecialistsfromalloverScandinaviatotheWidexNordicSeminar.In2009theseminartookplaceinStockholmandwasattendedbyover110participants.

Adiverseprogrammefeaturednumerousinterestingsubjects,includingnoisereductionstrategiesandtheWidexAudibilityExtender(whichmakesitpossibletomovehighfrequenciestoalowerfrequencyregion),andtheroleofmusicinhelp-ingpeopletorelaxandconcentrate,thebasisbehindtheZenlisteningprogram.

Therewasalsotimeformoreunorthodoxsubjects,includingaquickpresentationofsomeoftheinnovativesolutionsthatto-morrow’shearingaidsmayhavetooffer.AndtheDanishartistPerArnoldispokeabouttheimportanceofbeingabletohearinordertocapturetheimportantmomentsinlife.

ThenextWidexNordicSeminartakesplacein2011,whichmarksitstenthanniversary.


shAKen To The coreThecityofL’AquilainItalyhittheheadlinesinApril2009whenitwasdevastatedbyanearthquake.ThecityishometoLoretoFantauzziandathrivinghear-ingaiddispensingbusiness.

Thebeautiful,medievalcityofL’Aquila,capitalofAbruzzo,nettlesbelowtheApennineMountains96kmnorth-eastofRome.Itspicturepostcardsetting,clusterofterracottaroofedbuildings,ancientwallsandcastlemadeitapopulartouristdestination.

Butat3.32amon6thApril,thecityandits70,000inhabitantswerehitbyamassiveearthquakemeasuring5.8ontheRichterscale.308peoplediedand65,000weremadehomeless.Upto10,000buildingswereeitherdestroyedordamaged.

Theworsthitpartofthecitywastheoldtownthatdatesbacktothe13thcentury.Notonlywerehomes,churches,civicbuild-ingsandmuseumsaffectedbutmanybusinessestoo.OneofthesewastheshopofhearingaiddispenserLoretoFantauzzi.

AboUt L’AQUiLA

•L’Aquilawasfoundedinthe13thcentury•MadecapitaloftheprovinceofAbruzzointhe19thcentury•Thecityhasahistoryofearthquakes:1315,1349,1452,1501,

1646,1703and1706.•Itslocationonthebedofanancientlakemeansitisparticularly

susceptibletoseismicactivity.•HomeofoneofItaly’smostfamoussportsteams:

L’AquilaRugby


SocieTy

“Myhearingaidbusinesshadbeenoperatingfor15years.Ihadfouremployeesandover1,000customers,”saysLoretooveracracklingphonelinefromhistemporarypractice.“L’Aquilawasabustlingcityofsquares,fountainsandBaroquechurches.Weenjoyedawonderfulsocialandculturallife.”

“Thenightoftheearthquakewasliterallyanightmare–andweveryquicklyrealisedthingswouldneverbethesameagain,”Loretoadds.“Therewastotaldevastation.Thejewelofourcity,theoldmedievalpartwasdestroyed.Andthatwaswheremylovelyhearingaidshopwaslocated!”

LAURAGIANNETTIistheGen-eralManagerofWidexItalia.ShedescribeswhattheydidafterhearingabouttheL’Aquila

quake:“Wewereveryshocked–andwewereveryworriedaboutLoretoandhisfamily.OurfieldmanagerimmediatelygotonthephonetofindoutiftheywereOK–andluckilytheywereallunharmed.”

“Butthoughheandhisfamilyweresafe,itsoonbecameclearthathisbusinesshadbeenterriblyaffected.Itwasobvioushewasnotgoingtobeabletooperatefromhisbusinesspremisesforsometimetocome.”

LoretohadbeenacustomerofWidexItaliaforanumberofyears.“OurbusinessmodelmirrorsthatofWidexinDen-mark,”statesLaura.“Weareonlyinterestedinlong-termbusinessrelationshipsdevelopedwithtrust,understanding

andmutualrespect.WehadthatkindofrelationshipwithLoreto–whichiswhywewerekeentoshowhimtangibleassistancetohelptogethisbusinessoperatingasquicklyaspossible.”

“Weprovidedfinanceforacampervan,”addsLaura,“whichseemedthequickestwaytogetthebusinessre-started.Itwastheobviousandmosthelpfulthingtodo.NotonlycouldLoretovisithisnowfarflungcustomers,butitwasgoodformarketingthebusinessandprovidingavisibleplaceintownforothercustomerstovisit.”

LaurabelievesthatthisinitiativereflectscoreWidexval-ues.“ThegoalsforWidexItaliaarethesameasthewiderWidexgroupethos–investinginandworkingwithselecteddispensersoverthelongterm.WeexpecttobeworkingwithLoretoformanyyearsaftertheestimatedtenyearrebuild-ingprogrammeforL’Aquila.”

MostbuildingsinL’Aquilawerebadlydamaged.Almostallthepopulationhadtobehousedineithertemporarytentedcamps,inthehomesoffriendsandfamily,orinhotelsalongthecoast.

Ifthiswasnotbadenough,therewereotherdisastrouscon-sequences.“Alleconomicactivitystopped,”Loretocontinues.“Hospitals,courts,businessesallwereclosed–includingmybusiness.Myshopwasseverelydamaged.Unusable.”Despitethis,withinaweekLoretowasinhiscarvisitinghisverydis-persedclientele.


SocieTy

widex itALiA sUPPorts sAVe the ChiLdren

LeadingcharitySavetheChildrenhaslaunchedasupportpro-grammefortheyoungervictimsoftheL’Aquilaearthquake.

ItinvolvessettingupalocalorganisationinAbruzzothatwillpro-videeducationalandsupportservicesforyoungpeopleandtheirparents.OntheoccasionoftheItalianAudiologyNationalCon-gress(ANAP)WidexItaliamadeadonation,whichallowedSavetheChildrentobegintheprojecttwomonthsaheadofschedule.

LoretoFantauzziandhismobileclinic.

TheteamfromWidexItaliawereincontactimmediatelytofindoutifLoretoandhisfamilyweresafe.Oncethatwases-tablished,theconversationturnedtohowtogetthebusinessupandrunningagain.

ItwasdecidedthatWidexwouldprovidefundingforthepur-chaseofacampervanfromwhichLoretocouldserviceandfithearingaids.“TheshoppingcentreontheoutskirtsofthecitywasnotbadlydamagedandsoonbecametheneweconomicheartofL’Aquila.WeparkedtheWidexcampervanhere–givingusvisibilityandapresencealongsideotherbusinessesoperatingoutofcaravansandcontainers.Ialsousedittovisitmydispersedclientsinthecoastalhotelsforinstance.”

TherehavebeendevastatingeffectsonLoreto’stypicallyel-derlycustomers.“Everyone,youngandold,wasbadlyaffectedatthetimeofthequake,andtheelderlyhavesufferedmore,beinglessabletodealwithsuchdramaticchange.Manyarestilltraumatisednow.”

ManyofLoreto’scustomershavebeenpleasedbyhisefforts.“Therehavebeenlotsofexpressionsofgratitudethathavebeenmuchappreciated,”explainsLoreto.

Heisnowlookingtothefutureandrebuildinghislifeandbusiness.Thepracticehassetupshopinatemporarymedicalcentreintheshoppingmallalongsideotherhealthprofession-als.Hefeelspositiveaboutthefuture.“Hopefully,inthelongrunthecitywillreturntonormal–inmanywaysalotlikeitwasbefore.Andalleconomicactivitywillreturn.”


widex ArouNd The world

couNTry Profile: beLgiUM

CatherineVeranneman,togetherwithhersisterNathalie,isthethirdgenera-tioninVerannemanCo.Thebusinesswassetupbyher

grandfather,Gaston,in1956withErikWestermannofWidex.ThecompanydistributesWidexproductsinBelgiumandemploys80people.

q: how have sales grown over the last 10 years?

a: Oursalesgrowthwasveryhighwhentheworld’sfirstdigitalhearingaid,Senso,cameonthemarketin1996,andthecompanygrewsteadilyuntil2007.Sincethenwehaveexperi-encedamorestablemarket.

q: what are the biggest challenges facing your company at the moment?

a: OneofthebiggestistomaintainandgrowourpositionamongstENTprofessionals,dispensersandusers.Theworldischangingandhearingimpairedpeoplearemuchmoreopen-mindedandknowledgeableabouthearingaids,thetechnologyandproductsavailable.Thecompetitioniscomingfrominternationalretailersthatinvestlargesumsofmoneyinmarketing,newshopsandsometimesgotomarketwithlowerprices.

q: what is it about widex and its products that keep your dispensers working with you?

a: Itisseveralthings.Widexisawell-knownbrandandtheirproductsarestraightforwardtofit.ThequalityofWidexhear-ingaidsmeansfewreturnsandminimaltimewastedforboththedispensersandusers.Ontopofthatitisalsothereputa-tionofVerannemanCoandthetechnicalsupportandservicesweprovidetodispensers.

Forfurtherinformationaboutthecompanyvisit:www.veranneman-audio.be

beLgiUM At A gLAnCe

Full name: KingdomofBelgiumpopulation: 10.6million(UN,2009)capital: Brusselsarea: 30,528sqkm(11,787sqmiles)major languages: Dutch(localvariantcalledFlemish),French, Germanhead of state: HMKingAlbert2ndgovernment: Parliamentarydemocracytotal number of hearing aids sold per year:55,000

q: what is your role at the company?

a: IamthesalesmanagerresponsibleforourdispensersandthemarketingcontactforourshopsintheFrenchpartofBelgium.I’malsoinvolvedinthehearingaidfittingsandinmanagingrelationshipswiththemedicalprofession.

q: how long have you worked in the business?

a: 22years

q: what attracted you to the world of hearings aids?

a: Firstly,itwastheclinicalelement–Icompletedatwo-yearaudiologyqualification.Secondly,thefittingsideofourbusinessshowedmehowhearingaidscouldhelppeopleintheirdailylives.LastlyIwasalsointerestedinhowtechnologychangedthewayhearingaidsarefitted.

q: can you describe the business partnership between widex and veranneman co?

a: Itisaveryclosepartnershipbetweentwofamilybusinessesbasedontrustandongoingcontact.


TechNology

The Power of The ChiP

Chancesareyouareusingsomethingwithachipinitrightnow.

Themicrochip,ortheintegratedcircuit,isthenervoussystemthatcontrolsjustabouteveryelectronicdeviceintheworld.Itiscentraltocomputers,mobilephones,satellites,homeelec-tronics,aircraft,microwaveovens,washingmachines,iPods,cars,theinternetand,ofcourse,hearingaids.

Themicrochipowesitsexistencethankstothediligenteffortsoftwoelectricalengineers.Aschancewouldhaveit,bothwereworkingonsolvingthesameproblematroughlythesametimeinthelatefifties,thatis–howtomakemoreoutofless.Beforetheinventionofthechip,electronicdevicessuchascomputersandradiosusedvacuumtubes,orvalves,whichwerecumbersome,heavyandgeneratedalargeamountofheatwhileconsumingalotofpower.Forexample,inthefor-ties,typicalcomputersusedover10,000vacuumtubesandoccupiedaround100squaremetresofspace!

Withtheintroductionofthetransistorin1947,itwassuddenlypossibletomakemorecomplexandfasterelectroniccircuits,resultinginsmaller,moreefficientdevices.However,initiallytransistorsweremadeasindividualcomponentsandconnect-edtootherelectroniccomponents(seebelow)tomakeacir-cuit,andeventuallythiscausedproblemsasthereweresimplytoomanycomponents.Inordertomakecircuitsevenfaster,thetransistorshadtobepackedcloserandclosertogether.

Entertwoengineers:JackKilbyandRobertNoyce.Theirsolu-tiontothephysicallimitationsoftransistorswastopacknotjustthetransistorsbutalltheotherelectricalcomponentssuchasresistors,capacitorsanddiodes,ontoasinglepieceofsemi-conductormaterial,orchip,allmadefromthesamematerial(suchassilicon).Thismeantthateverythingcouldbeintercon-nectedtoformacompletecircuit.

size oF a FingernaiLAsResearchandDevelopmentengineer,ThomasTroelsen,explains,today’schipsconsistofmillionsofinterconnectedtransistorsallpackedintoafewsquaremillimetres.“Whenwetalkaboutachip,itisreallyasliceofsilicon,averycommonchemicalelement,thesizeofafingernail,”hesays.“Fingernails

27

TechNology

varyinsizeasdochips.Onthissliceofsiliconisbuiltanetworkoftransistors,andsometimesotherelectroniccomponents,thatformanintegratedcircuit.”

Forthehearingaidindustry,thechiphasbeennothingshortofrevolutionary.Notonlyhasitmeantasignificantreductioninthesizeofhearingaidsbut,accordingtoDr.BobMorley,AssociateProfessorofElectricalandSystemsEngineeringatWashingtonUniversityinSt.Louis,USA,thechiphasalsoradi-callyimprovedsoundprocessingandallowedfortheincorpo-rationofavastarrayoffeatures.“Astransistorsgotsmallerandwecouldputmoreonachipwiththesamebatterydrain,wewereabletoaddsophisticatedactivefeedbacksuppres-sionandnoisereductionalgorithms.”

anaLogUe and digitaLTobetterunderstandthewaysinwhichchipsfunctioninahearingaid,it’simportanttomakeadistinctionbetweenana-logueanddigitalreproduction.ThomasTroelsenexplains,“Theworldasweexperienceitisanalogue.Weseeacontinuousspectrumofcoloursandshades;wehearalllevelsofsoundetc.Itispossibletomakeelectroniccircuitrythatrepresentssignalsthisway.Duetothenatureofelectronicsthough,somenoiseisaddedduringprocessing,andthissetsalimittothecomplexityofsignalprocessingthatcanbedonewithana-logueelectronics.”

Thisiswheredigitalsoundprocessing,orDSP,comesin.“Thealternative,”saysThomasTroelsen,“istousedigitalelectron-ics,basicallyanumericrepresentationofdata.Aconversionismadefromanaloguetodigitalform-andfromdigitaltoana-logue-inordertoperformthesignalprocessingusingdigitaltechnologyorDSP”.

digitaL revoLUtionBeforedigitaltechnologyfullyevolved,Widexhearingaidsfeaturedmostlyanaloguechips.ThefirsttouseacustommadechipdesignedbyWidexwastheQuattroin1988,whichmadequiteanimpactatthetimeasitwasthefirsttointro-duceuserprogrammablesettingsandaremotecontrol.Thenextgeneration,Logo,wasasuccessfulmid-rangeseriesthatalsousedacustomanaloguechip.Boththesewerehybridhearingaids,thatis,thecontrolandprogrammingofanaloguecomponentscouldbedonedigitally.

ThetruedigitalrevolutionarrivedwiththelaunchoftheSensoseriesin1995.AccordingtoThomasTroelsen,theSensotookhearingaidstoacompletelynewlevel.“WhereLogodideverythingthatwasrealisticusinganaloguetechnology,theSensointroducedfunctionalitythatcouldnothavebeenmadeusinganaloguetechnology,”hesays.“TherewereacoupleofyearswhereWidexwasvirtuallyaloneinthehigh-endmarketbecauseoftheSenso.”

Nowofcourse,allmanufacturersutilisedigitalchiptechnologytovaryingdegrees.However,accordingtoThomasTroelsen,notallchipsareequal.“It’sabitlikecars,-theyallhaveen-gines,transmissions,steeringwheels,lightsetc.-yet,theyarenotthesame,”hesays.ThelatestwirelesshearingaidfromWidex,CLEAR440,hasnofewerthanfourchips.Thesehandleeverythingfromanaloguetodigitalconversion,processing,radio–orthewirelesslink,fittingdata,voicemessagesandsoon.

real size: Chipshavemillionsoftransistorspackedintoonlyafewsquaremillimetres.


TechNology

DuringthedesignofDSPchips,programmingcodeiswrittenthatdescribesthestructureofthechip.Thiscodecanalsobeusedtomakeaprototypeofthefinishedchip,ostensiblytodetermineifthechipactuallyworksasintended.FortheCLEAR440series,thedesignprocesswasmorecomplicated,andseveralcombinedprototypesweremadeinordertogetthedesiredperformance.

Eventually,thecodeisusedtocreatemasksthatdescribethemake-upofthechip.UVlightisshoneontothemasksandgraduallyapattern(orcircuit)isformed.Thisprocessisthenrepeated.AsThomasTroelsenexplains,itisvitaltogetthingsrightfromthebeginning.“Sincethisisaverytimeconsumingandexpensiveprocesswehavetomakesurethateverythingiscorrect.Thisverificationisprobablythemostchallengingpartofthedesignprocess,”hesays.

more oUt oF LessWithoutdoubt,chipshaveradicallyalteredtheindustry.“Itisfairtosaythatboththechipsingeneralanddigitalchipsspe-cificallyrevolutionisedthehearingaidindustry,”saysThomasTroelsen.“Withoutanaloguechips,developmentwouldhavestoppedatthe1985level,withoutdigitalchipsitwouldhavestoppedatthe1995level.Thelimittowhatwecanputintoahearingaidisbeingcontinuallyraisedbythetechnologicaldevelopmentinthesemiconductorindustry,thatis,thechipmanufacturers.”

Andthisincredibletechnology,startedbytwoambitiousengineersoversixtyyearsago,hasultimatelyledtoenormousbenefitsforhearingaidusers–notjustintermsoftechnology,butalsodesign.“Thechiphasallowedformorefunctionalityinusinglesspowerandlessspace.Thishasalsoimpactedthedesignofhearingaids.Becausechipstakeuplessspaceandlesspower,thehousingcanbesmallerandthebatterycanbesmaller.Thiscallsformoreattractivedesigns,”saysThomasTroelsen.

BobMorleyagreesthatdigitaltechnologyhasresultedinthedevelopmentofhearingaidsthatnotonlyhavesuperiorsoundqualityandbetterspeechintelligibilitybutaremorecomfort-abletowear.Itisalsoimportanttorememberthatthetechnol-ogyhashadasignificantimpactonaudiologyasawhole.Forprofessionals,chiptechnologyhas“requiredmoretrainingtofitsophisticateddevices,”hesays.But“theaudiologisthasmanymorefeaturestoputtousetohelphearingaidusersnow.”Andtheseuserscanenjoysuchbenefitsas“accuracyandstabilityoffit,comfortduetothelimitingofmaximumpoweroutputandfeedbacksqueal,aswellasnoisereductionanddirectionalmicrophonesforbetterintelligibility.”

Onethingiscertain;withoutthehumblemicrochip,theworld-andnotleastthehearingaid–wouldbevastlydifferent.

Achipisanintegratedcircuit;thatis,anelectroniccircuitmadeupofcomponentssuchastransistors,resistors,capacitorsanddiodes.Theseareconnectedtoeachotheronthechip.•Thetransistorcontrolstheelectricalcurrent.•Theresistorlimitstheelectricalcurrent.•Thecapacitorstoresandreleasestheelectricalcurrent.•Thediodeallowsthecurrentinonedirectionbutnotinthe

otherdirection.

Ifahouseshrankatthesameratetransistorshave,youwouldn’tbeabletoseethehousewithoutamicroscope.


SocieTy

helPiNg mArgiNAliSed ChiLdren in brAziL

”WechosetosupportCasadoAmparobecauseweknowthemandknowthattheymakeaseriousefforttohelpmar-ginalisedchildren”saysMarceloVasconcellos,CEOofWidexBrazil.

ThecollectiontookplaceinconnectionwithaWidexseminar,inwhichmorethan350audiologistsandENTdoctorspartici-pated.Thankstotheircontribution,372kilogramsoflong-lifefoodwereprovidedfortheapproximately20childrenwhoarecurrentlystayinginthetwohomesofCasasdoAmparo.

StreetchildrenareamajorsocialprobleminBrazilandthisisalsothecaseinthestateofSãoPaulo,intheeasternpartofBrazil.

Astheeconomygrows,anincreasingpartofthepopulationinSãoPauloismovingtothecitiesinsearchofabetterlife.Butlifeinthecitiescanbetough,especiallybecausesocialnetworksarenotasstrongastheyareinthecountry.So,associetyisurbanised,anincreasingnumberofpeoplearemar-ginalised.

Thisadverseeffectisparticularlynoticeableamongchildrenandteenagers,manyofwhomhavetoliveonthestreet.ThesearethechildrenthattheorganisationCasasdoAmparoFraternoJesusdeNazaréistryingtohelp.ThisNGO,whichdependsonprivatedonations,hasestablishedtwohomesformarginalisedchildrenandyoungpeople,between3and18yearsofage.Theobjectiveistonotonlygivethechildrenaplacetostay,butalsotosecuretheirschoolingandtoprovideforthemuntiltheycanreturntotheirfamiliesorotherwisemakeitontheirown.

WidexBrazilfrequentlysupportscharityinitiatives,andin2009decidedtoorganiseafoodcollectionforthebenefitofCasadoAmparo.

The AdVentUres of A BuSiNeSSmAN

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PeoPle

Withmorethan60year’sexperienceinthehearingaidbusiness,ErikWestermannisoneoftheindus-try’smostexperiencedfigures.LISTENspoketothemanwhofoundedWidexin1956(togetherwithChristianTøpholm)andwhohasdedicatedhislifetobuildinguponeoftheworld’sleadinghearingaidmanufacturers.

ErikWestermanniswhatyoucouldcallagiftedstoryteller.Thecaptivating87-year-oldbusinessmanradiatesenergy,andwhenyoumeethimyouimmediatelyrealisethatyouaredeal-ingwithsomeoneoutoftheordinary.

chiLdhoodThestorybeginsin1923whenErikWestermannwasbornonhismother’sbirthday-lessthanayearafterhisbrotherPer.ErikWestermann’sfatherwasseverelyhearingimpairedasaresultofchildhoodmeasles.Asaresult,hegrewupwithanunderstandingofthepotentialpsychologicalconsequencesassociatedwithhearingloss.“Myfatherwasakindmanwithmoralintegrity,buthewasalsostronglyaffectedbyhishandi-cap.Ilearnedwhatitmeanstobehearingimpaired–some-thingthatbenefittedmelaterinlife”.Hisfather’scareerprospectsasabankemployeewerelimitedbyhishearingloss,andErikWestermanngrewupinrelativelymodestcircumstances.Thefamilylodgedwithhisgrandfather–awealthy,eccentricandworld-famousagricultureprofessor–inValby,asuburbofCopenhagen.

Thehomehousedmanystrongandcolourfulpersonalities,in-cludingErik’sUncle,CarlWestermann,whoservedascaptainoftheartilleryship‘NielsJuel’duringWorldWarII.WhentheGermanoccupyingpowerdecidedtodisarmtheDanishmili-taryforcesinAugust1943,Carlchose–afterbattlingGermanfighterplanes-toruntheshipagroundanddestroyeverythingusable.OnlyinterventionfromtheDanishkingprevented

hisexecution,andtheincidentbecameasymbolofthecon-frontationbetweentheGermansandtheDanes.

AnothercharismaticfamilymemberwasthepublisherUnclePoulWestermann,whowasErikWestermann’smentorandideal.Somewhatofanenfantterrible,hefoundhiscallingafteraturbulentyouthasacarpetdealertravellingalloverAfrica,AsiaandtheMiddleEast.PoulWestermannwasamanoftheworldandhisaccountsofhismanyjourneysmadeadeepimpressiononyoungErik;forexample,whensailingonasheepbargeontheTigrisonenight,hebecameengrossedinafullnight’sconversationwitha”big,stoutmonk”,laterbetterknownasPopeJohnXXIII.

SuchheroicfiguresandstoriesinspiredErikWestermannandwerefundamentalinforminghisownspiritofenterpriseandloveofadventure.

In September 1945, the Danish survivors from the Neuengamme sub-camp held a victory party in Odd Fellow Palace in Copenhagen. Erik Westermann can be seen in the foreground facing his fiancée Gerda.


PeoPle

the warOnawintereveningin1944aneventoc-curredthatforeverchangedthelifeofErikWestermann,whowasnow21yearsold.TheSecondWorldWarwasraging,DenmarkoccupiedandErikWestermannhadjoinedapatroltofighttheGermans.ButontheeveningofDecember5,Gestaposoldierswithmachinegunskickedinthedoorofthegroup’shideout.ErikWestermannandhisgroupweretakenprisoners;afterinterroga-tiontheyweretransportedincrammedcattlewagonstotheNeuengammeconcentrationcampsouthofHamburg.

Amonthlatertheyweresenttoasub-campontheDutch-Germanborder.Onthejourneytherethetrainwascaughtinoneofthealliedforces’bombardmentsinBremen.Whenthebombardmentstoppedaftersixhoursandthedustsettled,ErikWestermannpeeredthroughthecracksofthelockedwagontoseethecitywasdevastated.Anadjacentlo-comotivewasupright.“Itwasamiraclethatwesurvived,”hesaysandfallssilent.

Inthesub-camp,ErikWestermannexperi-encedmonstrositiesonlyheardofinhistorybooks.Now,morethan65yearslater,heisstilldeeplymovedbythesememories.HecanalsoremembervividlyhisencounterwiththeSwedishcountFolkeBernadotte,whohelpedthousandsofScandinavianprisoners,includingErikWestermannhimself,tosafety.“BernadottecameoutwiththeGermanheadofthecamp.6000prisonersbegantohumtheSwedishnationalanthemlikearoarinthemoonlight.That’ssomethingIwillneverforget”.

Erik Westermann has always been an excellent shooter – a talent he developed in his time as a Lieutenant in the Reserves. Today he is a keen hunter.

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PeoPle

dream teamHomeinDenmarkafterthewarErikWestermanngraduatedinCommercefromCopenhagenBusinessCollege.Hejoinedthearmy,becomingaSecondLieutenantintheReservesandthenlaterworkedasateacher.Butsoonhisloveforadventureprovedtoostrong.Withthehelpofhismentor,UnclePoul,hetravelledtoSpaintowork,firstasaclerkatasardinefactoryinthenorth-westofSpainandlaterasasecretaryattheDanishconsulate-generalinBarcelona.

The young owners in ‘formal attire’ for the official presentation of Widex 561 – Widex’ first hearing aid developed by Christian Tøpholm.

DespitethesurrealbackgroundofFranco’sregime,ErikWest-ermannhadmanyhappyexperiencesinSpain,wherehewentbythenicknameof‘ElRubio’-the‘fair-haired’.ButeventuallyhereturnedtoDenmarktomarryhisfiancée,Gerda,whomhehadknownfromchildhoodandfellinlovewithafterthewar.

Onedayin1949ErikWestermanncameacrossajobadvertfromthehearingaidcompanyOticon(thenknownastheAmericanDanishOticonCorporation)whowerelookingforsomeonetobuildupthecompany’sinternationalsalesnet-work.ErikWestermannhadheardofOticonthroughhisbroth-erPer,whoasagraphicdesignerhaddevelopedthecompa-ny’slogoandadvertisingmaterial.ErikWestermannwasoneofonlytwocandidatesoutofseventywhowereemployedforatrialperiodtocompetefortheposition.Hegotthejob.

AtOticon,ErikWestermannmetthetalentedelectronicsen-gineerChristianTøpholm,thenbusybuildingupOticon’sR&Dcapacity.Describingthefirstmeetingbetweenthemhesays,“Itwasprettyformal.ChristianTøpholmwasadedicateden-gineer,andtechnicalmattersweren’texactlymystrongpoint.FromthelookonhisfaceIcouldseethathewasthinking,‘Ohno,notoneofthose’.”However,thetwoofthemsoonworkedcloselytogether,quicklybecomingthecompany’sdreamteam.WhenErikWestermannwasfirstemployed,OticonwasonlyrepresentedinScandinavia.Injustafewyearsthough,hecreatedanet-workofnolessthan42distributorsaroundtheworld.DuringthistimeChristianTøpholmbuiltthefirstEuropeantransistoramplifiedhearingaid.

a bUsiness adventUreHoweverErikWestermannandChristianTøpholmwerein-creasinglydissatisfiedwiththeiremployer,WilliamDemant.Theyfeltthattheydidn’tgetenoughcreditfortheircontribu-tion,andonedayinNovember1955theyquittheirjobs.That


PeoPle

Erik Westermann welcomes His Royal Highness Prince Henrik of Denmark during a royal visit in September 1998.

sameeveningtheymetinChristianTøpholm’shouseandoverabottleofMartinitheideaofWidexbegantotakeshape.

“Iwasgoodatlanguagesandwriting,”saysErikWestermann,“andmybrothermadeouradvertisingmaterial.ChristianTøpholmwasauniquelygifted,innovativeengineer.Andhisfatherwasaveryskilledtoolmaker.Togetherwehaditall,andaboveall,wehadfun”.

So,whatwastobecomeoneofDenmark’sbusinessadven-turesbeganinChristianTøpholm’sbasement.WhileChristianTøpholmthrewhimselfintodevelopingthefirstWidexhear-ingaid,ErikWestermanngraduallycreatedaninternationalnetworkofdistributors–firstinEngland,Germany,FranceandBelgiumandlaterintheUSA,JapanandAustralia.Herehesowedtheseedsthatquicklystartedtogrowintothrivingbusinesses.

sUccess FactorsToday,54yearslater,Widexemploys2400peopleworldwide,exports97%ofitsproductsandhasdistributorsinover100countries.

ThesuccessofWidexcanbeattributedtothestrongtraditionofengineeringestablishedbyChristianTøpholmandcontin-uedbyhissonJan,presentCEOofWidex.ButErikWester-mann’sbusinessflairandextraordinaryabilitytoestablishcontactsandspottalentwerealsoessential.“Ihaveputmysoulintospottingtherightpeople.AndIhaveneverbeendisappointedinthepartnersIhavechosen”,hesays.

Whenaskedhowhespotstalent,ErikWestermannemphasisestwofactors:personalityandfamily.Andwhenhesaysfamily,hemeansbothintheliteralandbroadersenseoftheword;indeedthenotionofthe‘Widexfamily’isstillafundamentalvalueforthecompanyanditspartnerstoday.ManyofthebusinessesErikWestermannhashelpedcreatearenowrunby


PeoPle

secondandthirdgenerationfamilymembers–asforexampleVerannemaninBelgium,SteinerinIsraelandMeltsnerandSparintheUSA.

AnothersuccessfactoristhefocusontrainingthatErikWestermannwasoneofthefirstinthebusinesstointroduceinthefifties.WhenhestarteddoingbusinesswiththeEnglishdistributorPCWerth,hequicklyrealisedthatbusinessmenwhosellhearingaidstousersmustbeproperlytrained.“Whenwestarted,thedispensershadnotraining.Theysoldallkindsofjunkandweretotallyunderthethumbofthemanufactur-ers.Tostrengthenoursalesweofferedourdispenserstraining,whichmarkedarevolutionintheindustry”.

ErikWestermannquicklyintroducedthesamestrategyinothercountries,InSpainforexample,hecreatedanetworkoftrainedhearingaiddispenserstogetherwithJuanMartinez,founderofWidexAudífonos.Hisapproachcontributedtotheprofessionalisationoftheindustryandwentsomewayinsup-portingtechnologicaladvancesinsubsequentdecades.

a new generationIntheseventies,ChristianTøpholmandErikWestermanndecidedthatthetimehadcomeforthenewgenerationtograduallytakeover.Evenasachild,JanTøpholmspentalottimeatWidexandaftergraduatinginengineeringhejoinedthecompanyin1972.ErikWestermannhadthreesons;Peter,SørenandAnders.Peterchosetobecomeamicrobiologistandwenthisownway.Søren,M.Sc.,specialisedinelectronicsandacoustics,andAnders,withadegreeinbusinesseconomics,bothjoinedtheirfather’sbusiness.

Inthenineties,thisformidableteamworkedtogethertoleadWidexandthehearingaidindustryintothedigitalera,introducingtheworld’sfirstfullydigitalin-the-earhearingaid,WidexSenso.

ErikWestermannretiredfromtheday-to-daymanagementofWidexin1993,confidentofhissons’abilitiestomanagethecompany.Today,Sørenisresponsibleforaudiologicalre-search,patentsandIT,whileAndersassumesresponsibilityforfinancialmatters.

Looking backErikWestermannhasonlyafewregretsandsorrows,butonestandsout.ThedeathofChristianTøpholminatragictraf-ficaccidentin1985shockedtheTøpholmfamilyandWidex.ThinkingofthisErikWestermannbecomesquietandreflec-tive.PerhapstheonlypositivethingwastheassurancethoughthatChristianTøpholm’sson,Jan,wasfullyqualifiedtofollowinhisfather’sfootsteps.

TodayErikWestermannenjoyshiswell-earnedretirement,dedicatingtimetooneofhispassions,golf.Nevertheless,theloveofadventureisintactandhehastakenuphunting,apas-sionthathepursueswiththesameenthusiasmandfearless-nessasthe17-year-oldboywhowasinvolvedintheDanishResistanceintheforties.

LookingbackonalonglifeofworkforWidex,ErikWester-mannsays,“Theworlddoesn’towemeanything.Ihaveafantasticfamily.AndIhavesomanyfriendsthatIcouldpackasuitcaseandspendtherestofmylifetravellingaroundtheworldtovisitthem.Theywouldwelcomemewithopenarms”.

Andnoonecouldeverdoubtthat.


BuSiNeSS NewS

widex wins dANiSh eNTrePreNeur of The yeAr 2009 Prize

Inadditiontotheaward,Widexalsowonthe‘Globalization’categoryasthemostsuccessfulDanishgrowthbusinessabroad.AndasDanishnationalwinner,Widexwillbepartici-patinginErnst&Young’sWorldEntrepreneuroftheYearin2010.

LastyearWidexwonErnst&Young’sprestigiousDanishEntre-preneuroftheYearprize.

Nowenteringits23rdyear,Ernst&YoungEntrepreneuroftheYearisoneoftheworld’smostprestigiousbusinessawards.Theprizecelebratesleadingsuccessful,growinganddynamicbusinessesinfiftydifferentcountries.

TributewaspaidtoWidexnotonlybecauseofitssuccessfulfinancialresultsinatimeoffinancialandeconomiccrisis,butalsobecauseofthecompany’sapproachtocorevaluessuchasmanagement,employeerelationsandawillingnesstoassumeanactiveroleasasociallyresponsiblecompany.ChristianFrigast,chairmanofthejury,andmanagingdirectoroftheDanishcapitalfundAcxel,saidthatthejuryplacedgreatimportanceonthepositiveimpressiongivenbythecompanybothexternallyandamongstakeholders.“ThewinneroftheEntrepreneuroftheYear2009awardsatis-fiesallcriteriatothefull,”hesaid.“Thecompanyhascreatedgrowththroughitstechnologyandinnovativework.Despitethisgrowth,entrepreneurshipcontinuestobeacknowledgedasacatalyst.It’sacompanythatfocusesontechnology,de-velopmentandskilledmarketing.Thecompanyhasachievedapositionasoneoftheworld’sbestandlargestsuppliersinitsfield.Itshistoryisincrediblyfascinating,anditsfuturepros-pectsandstrategiesindicatethatthiswillcontinue–crisisornot.Thewinnerthisyearisabusinesswhich,withitsglobaloutlook,helpscreategrowthnotjustforitself…butforallDanes”.



widex bAbY440 – The BeST STArT iN lifeWidexhaslaunchedahearingaiddesignedandmanufacturedespeciallyforbabies–WIDEXBABY440.Thiscementsthecom-pany’spositionatthecuttingedgeofaudiologytechnology.


TechNology

Thetestswereusedtoevaluatewhetherthehearingaidwasascomfortableaspossible,stayedinplaceandwaseasytofit.However,thesoundperformancewastestedonadultstogettheimmediatefeedbackthatisnotpossiblefromsuchyoungchildren.

smaLL is beaUtiFULWIDEXBABY440ispackedwithradicalinnovationsthathaveovercomemanyofthedesignchallenges.Theseincludeamini-aturehousingsuitableforababy’stinyearsandsoftearpiecesandanchors.Ababy’searcanalandouterearareverydelicatesosomeofthecomponentsoftheinstrumenthavebeenmanufacturedinsoft,flexiblematerials.

Securingthehearingaidwasalsoadifficultproblemtosolve.Butthishasbeensuccessfullyovercome–tosuchanextentthatwhenoneofthetrialinfantsthrewherselfoffhermother’slapandendedcompletelyupsidedowntheWIDEXBABY440remainedsecurelyinplace.“Thatwasagreatday,”saysProjectManager,LarsBaekgaard.

growing with babyThereisnoneedforanewearmouldimpressioneveryfewmonthsasthebabyanditsearsgrow.Theear-tip,thepartofthehearingaidthatgoesintotheear,canbechangedsothatthebabycancontinueusingthesamehearingaid.

Inaddition,theinnovativeSecureFixensuresthatthehearingaidanditscomponentpartssitsecurely.Therearealsofunc-tionsthatallowparentstomonitorthehearingaidanditsuse.ItcomeswitharemotecontrolandhasauniqueLEDforeasyobservationthattheaidisoperating.

Asuniversalnewbornhearingscreeninghasbeenimplementedaroundtheworld,wehaveneverbeenbetterplacedtomakeearlydiagnosisofinfanthear-ingimpairment.Thisscreeningindicatesthatthereare50,000infantsborneachyearwiththisimpair-ment.IntheUSalone,33babiesareborneverydaywithapermanenthearingloss.

scientiFic sUpportHowever,earlydetectionofhearinglossisonlypartofthesolution.Therehasalsobeenalargeamountofscientificworkonthenegativeeffectsonthedevelopmentofababy’sspeechandlanguagecausedbyhearingimpairment.Studieshavealsofocussedonthefactthatcommonhearingaidsdonotamplifysoundsintherequiredhigherbandwidthsneededbyinfants.

micro size hearing aidWIDEXBABY440providesthesolution.Notonlyisitoneofthesmallesthearingaidsintheworld,italsocapturestherequiredhigherfrequencysoundswithanextendedbandwidthof10kHzplus–beatinganyotherinstrumentonthemarket.Thisisvitalforababy-focussedproduct.Variousresearchstudieshaveidentifiedextendedbandwidthashelpingchil-dren’sspeechandlanguagedevelopment.

two year testThedevelopmentandtestingofWIDEXBABY440hastakenseveralyears.50babiesfromDenmark,SwedenandtheUSA,ranginginagesfromafewmonthstofouryearshavetestedthehearingaid.Thisleveloftestingwasrequiredtoovercomethespecificchallengesfacedindevelopingsuchaproduct.


TechNology

easy FitSohoweasyisWIDEXBABY440tofit?“Wehavemadeeveryefforttomakeitaseasyaspossible,”saysLarsBaekgaard.“Iwouldrateitaseasytohandleasanyotherhearingaid.PluswehavedevelopedabrandnewfittingflowcalledChildFit.Thisgivesbothprecisionandflexibilityinfittingtoallowforababy’sshortattentionspan.”

LarsBaekgaardandtheteambelievetheyhaveachievedasmallrevolutioninhearingaiddevelopment.“Ourmissionistogivepeoplewithhearinglossthesameopportunitiesforcom-municationasthosewithnormalhearing.Thisalsogoesfortheveryyoungest.”

some widex miLestones

1956widex 561:

Widex’firsthearingaid-anelegantpocketmodel!

1988quattro q8:firstdigitallyprogrammablehearingaidwithremotecontrol.

1995senso series:world’sfirstfullydigitalin-the-earhearingaid-arevolution.

2005inteo:world’sfirsthearingaidgivingatailor-madesoundexperience.

2007passion:world’ssmallestRIChearingaid-only22mmdiameter.

2009cLear440:Widex’firstcompletelywirelesshearingaid.

2010widex baby440:ARITEhearingaiddesignedspecificallyfor

babies.SourceS

White, K. R., “The Scientific Basis for Newborn Hearing Screen-ing: Issues and Evidence”, Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Workshop, October 1997

Yoshinaga-Itano, C. et al., “Language of Early- and Later-identified Children With Hearing Loss”, Pediatrics, 102(6), 1998

Stelmachowicz et al., “Effect of Stimulus Bandwidth on Auditory Skills in Normal Hearing Children and Hearing Impaired Children”, Ear & Hearing, 28(4), August 2007


TechNology

QuAliTy = reliABiliTy

theseproceduresinvolvemorethanjustthe20-strongQAdepartment.Itisembeddedinthepsycheofeveryonewhoworksinthecompany.“InabusinesslikeWidexyouneedtoapplytherightqualityassuranceactivitiesandyouneedengaged,enthusiasticandmotivatedemployeesinallpartsofthemanufacturingprocess.Ifyoudonothavecommittedemployees,youdonothaveanyonetoalertyouwhenthingsarerunningofftrack.”

Andhowdoesabusinesskeepthestaffmotivatedanden-gagedandabletodeliverthemostreliableandeffectiveprod-ucts?“Wehavewrittenqualityobjectivesandpoliciesandwecontinuouslyencouragepersonneltospeakupifsomethingisnotrightorseemsodd.Thestaffareourmostimportantassetandwetrytomakethemfeelappreciatedinallaspectoftheirwork,”addsBrianGeppert.

controLLing qUaLityTheWidexQualityManualoutlinesamyriadofqualitygoalsandobjectivesincludingGoalNumberOne:“wemustsupplyaproductthatatleastmeetstheexpectationsofourdistribu-torsandaudiologists.”WhilstthemostimportantobjectiveforWidexisforeveryoneinthebusinessto“understandthatthequalityoftheproductwesupplyhasadecisiveinfluenceuponthequalityoflifeofourend-users.”

Theday-to-dayQAprocessatWidexcontrolsandmaintainstrainingandqualificationsofpersonnelandcontrolsproductdesign,documentation,andpurchasing.Italsoencompassesproductidentification,traceabilityandvalidationandeventheadministrationofcustomercomplaints.

Allthisisachievedthroughinternalaudit,riskassessmentsandsomethingcalledCAPA-correctiveandpreventiveac-tions.BrianGeppertsays:“WeputalotofeffortsinCAPA

TotrulyappreciatehowWidexhasachieveditsenviablereputationforreliabilityyouhavetolookattheproceduresandprocessesthebusinesshasputinplace.Andyouhavetounderstandtheterm:QualityAssurance.

BrianGeppert,V.P.ofQualityAssurancedescribesitas:“Ensuringthatthesystemsandthephilosophyareinplacetominimisetheriskofmistakesoccurring.However,somethingscannotbecontrolledbysystemsaloneandrequiretestingorinspection–andthat’scalledQualityControl.”

the originsThetheoryandpracticeofQualityAssuranceandQualityCon-trolwerefirstpromotedbyagroupofAmerican‘qualitygurus’whoworkedwithJapaneseindustryafterthe2ndWorldWartoputitbackonitsfeet.ChiefamongthemwasDr.W.EdwardDeming–the‘manwhodiscoveredquality’.

TheseearlyexponentsofQualityAssurancearecreditedwithbeing“effectivelyresponsibleforthemiraculousturn-aroundofJapaneseindustryafter1945,andforputtingJapanontheroadtoqualityleadership,”accordingtoProfessorTonyBendellinhisbook“TheQualityGurus”writtenfortheUKgovernment’sDepartmentforTradeandIndustryinthe1990s.

TheseideasandprocedureswerethencopiedanddevelopedintheWestandcameoutofthenecessitytoadapttosurviveinincreasinglycompetitivemarkets.Theyinvolvedthedevel-opmentofbothaphilosophyandthetoolstoimplementthequalityagenda.

staFF the most important assetItistheseideasandprinciplesthatformthebasisoftheWidexQualityAssurance(QA)process.AsBrianGeppertexplains


TechNology

processesandthereforelearnfromourmistakes.Andbyapplyingsimpleandrepeatableprocedureswetrytominimisetheriskoferrorsoccurring.”

the FUtUreBrianGeppertstatesthatWidexhasseencontinuousimprove-mentinitsQAoverthe50plusyearssincethecompanywas

founded.ButhowdoesheseeQAdevelopinginthe21stcen-tury?“Inthecomingyearswewillfocusevenmoreonqualityintheearlystages-designingqualityintotheproductduringthedevelopmentphaseandingeneralconsideringqualityineveryaspectofourdailylives.Thatistosay-getitrightthefirsttime.Inadditiontothat,wewillplaceevenmoreemphasisoncloseco-operationwithourcustomersanddistributors.”

Listen – The world of widex44

corPorATe NewS

green is not jUst A

CoLoUr36,600squaremetresofofficespace,20,000solarcells,

4000lights,3,800windows,600kmofcabling,1,100doorsand120metresindiameter–thenewWidexheadquartersis

notjustbigbutdesignedtobefunctionalandenergy-efficient


corPorATe NewS

StigNiemiSørensen,whosecompanyEnOpSolhasbeeninstrumentalindevelopingATESsystemsthroughoutDenmark-includingtheWidexbuilding-explainshowthesystemworks.

“Inwinter,warmgroundwater-storedinthesummertimebetween50and100metresbelowgroundlevelinanaturallimestoneaquifer-ispumpeduptothebuilding,”hesays.“Asthegroundwaterflowsintothebuildingitpassesthroughheatexchangers.Intheheatexchangers,theheatfromthewaterheatsupadifferentvolumeofwaterthatcirculatesthroughoneortwoheatpumps.Theheatpumpsheatupthebuilding.Theresultingcoldgroundwaterisreturnedtothelimestone

Over600Widexemployeesmovedintoanew,prestigiousheadquartersinFebruary2010-abuildingthatisfunctionalanddesignedtototallyavoidtheuseoffossilfuels.Witharevolutionaryheatingsystem,andaplannedwindmillonsiteamongnumerousgreenfeatures,thenewheadquartersbringWidexintothefutureinstyle.

groUndbreaking technoLogyAttheheartofthenewbuildingliesaninnovativeheatingsystem,thefirstofitskindinScandinavia.KnownasAquiferThermalEnergyStorage(ATES),thisgeothermalsystemstoresexcessheatfromthebuildinginareservoirinthegroundwatertable(aquifer),andusesthisinwintertoheatthebuilding.


aquifergroundandstored.Insummer,thecoldwaterwillbepumpedupagainthroughtheheatexchanger,thistimetocoolthebuilding.”

TheATESsystemismuchmoreeffectivethantraditionalheat-ingsystemsandreducesCO2emissionsbyseventypercent,theequivalentof700tonnesCO2ayearortheemissionsfrom250gas-heatedhouses.

ThismakestheWidexheadquartersunique.“ThesystemcandeliverthetotaldemandforheatingandcoolingthebuildingandisthefirstofitskindinDenmark,”saysStigNiemiSørensen.

energy-eFFicientButthisisn’ttheonlyaspectofthebuildingthattakesintoaccounttheenvironment.Acollectionofsome20,000solarcellsplacedonthebuilding’sfaçadehelpsinmeetingitsenergydemandsandcreateauniqueandattractivemosaicpattern.Rainwaterisalsocollectedforuseinwastedisposalwhilesurpluswaterfromsurroundingroadsandditchesisledintoastreamfromwhereitseepsbackontothegroundwaterreservoir.

Inaddition,anintelligentcentralcontrolsystemmonitorsvari-ouscomponentsofthebuildingsuchaselectricityconsump-tion,heatingventilation,lightingetc.

Yetanotherclimate-friendlyinitiativeisaproposedwindmillonsite.ThewindmillcanactuallyprovidemoreenergythanWidexrequires,sonotonlywillitmakethecompanyCO2neu-tral,itwillalsoputextraenergybackintothepowergridandprovideexcesspowertothelocalcommunity.

corPorATe NewS

Photographer:MartinMathiesen

Herecomesthesun:solarcellsonthefacadenotonlylookgoodbuthelpmakethebuildingenergy-efficient.


moving into the FUtUreAccordingtoWidexCEO,JanTøpholm,thedesignofthenewheadquartersisnotjustfunctionalbutmoreimportantly,responsible.“Wehavedesignedabuildingforthefuture.WebuiltitsothatWidexhasthebestpossibleframeworkinwhichtodevelop,andIamconvincedthatwiththisbuildingwe’llstrengthenourpositioninthemarketinthefuture”,hesays.

“Wehavealsodesignedabuildingforthefutureinanotherway.Wehaveafinancialcrisisbutwealsohaveaclimateandenergycrisis.Andasahigh-techcompany,wehaveanobliga-tiontoensureourbuildingtakesintoaccountlimitedenviron-mentalresourcesaswell,particularlyouroverrelianceonfossilfuels.”

Focusontheenvironmentissomethingthatbotharchitectsanddevelopersareincreasinglyconcernedwith.Accordingtothearchitectofthebuilding,LarsRath,considerationfortheenvironmentandclimateisnowsomethingthatiscommon-placethroughoutboththearchitecturalprofessionandthebuildingindustryasawhole.“Today,thereisnoarchitecturepracticethatdoesn’tsetfocusontheenvironment,climateandsustainability,”hesays.“Theyareallclearaboutitbeingtheonlyrightwaytogo.”

Downthedrain:thebuildingcontainsoversixkilometresofpiping.Photographer:MartinMathiesen

ThisisasentimentmostlikelysharednotjustbytheentireWi-dexworkforcebutalsobyallthosewhoexperiencethebuild-ingatfirsthand.AsJanTøpholmsays,“Wehopethebuildingwillbecomealandmark.”

corPorATe NewS

www.widexbyggeri.dk

how ‘Ates’ worKs

Holesaredrilleddowntothegroundwatertabletocreatetenwells–fivecoldwaterwellsandfivewarmwaterwells.Inthesummerwaterisdrawnfromthecoldwaterwells(inblue)andpassedthroughaheatexchangertoprovidecoolingforthewholebuilding.

Thewater,whichhasabsorbedheatfrominsidethebuildingandthusrisenintemperature,issenttothewarmwaterwell(inred)whereitisstored.Inthewintertheprocessisreversed.Warmwaterisdrawnfromthewarmwaterwellstoheatthebuildingandthewaterthatcoolsdownisreturnedtothecoldwaterwellsforstorageanduseinthesummer.

48

PUMP down the VoLUMe

49 liSTeN – The world of widex

Accordingtoexperts,wecanexpectasignificantincreaseinthenumberofpeopleaffectedbyhear-inglossduetoprolongedexposuretoMP3players.

Turnitdown!That’sthebestadviceexpertscangivetothoseofuswholistentomusicregularlywithportablemusicplayers.Andwiththeincreasingpopularityofall-in-onedevicessuchastheiPhone,accesstomusiconthegohasneverbeeneasier.

reportArecentscientificstudyfortheEuropeanUnionconcludedthatprolongedexposuretoloudsoundsfrompersonalmusicplayersmayleadtotemporaryorpermanenthearingloss.Thestudywarnedthatyoungpeoplearenotawareoftherisksuntilitistoolateandthatsomeplayershaveamaximumvol-umethatisequivalenttoanairplanetakingoffnearby.Itwasrecommendedtolistentomusicatlevelsof80dB(roughlyequivalenttosomeoneshouting)orlesstobeconsideredsafe,nomatterforhowlong.

higher voLUme, Less distortionSowhatmakestheproblemsopronouncedwithMP3players?Afterall,personalmusicplayerssuchastheWalkmanhavebeenaroundforalmostthirtyyears.Accordingtochiefphysi-cianTureAndersen,personalmusicplayersareagreaterriskbecausetheymakeitpossibletoreproducehighsoundlevelswithoutdistortionandanysignificantlossofquality.“MP3’scanplaymusicatahigherlevelthantheoldWalkmansandwithlowerdistortion,”hesays.“Theuserthereforedoesnotturnitdownbecauseofdistortedreproduction.”Notonlyistheuseoftheseplayersmuchmorewidespread,butpeopleoftenheartheminsituationswithalotofbackgroundnoisesuchastraffic.“TheuseofMP3’sintrafficnoisedemandsaveryhighplayinglevel,”saysTureAndersen.“Ifthereisalotoftraffic–youneedtohearmusicevenifyouarecyclingonemetrefromathirtytonnetruckthat’sspeedingup.


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reaL riskWhilelittleresearchhasbeenconductedontheeffectofpersonalmusicplayersandhearingloss,thereispotentiallyarealrisk.InDenmark,TureAndersenandateamattheTekniskAudiologiskLaboratorium(TAL)inOdensetestedtheoutputsofpersonalmusicplayers.“WemeasuredthemaximumoutputfromanMP3playerthatwasconnectedtoanartificialearandwiththevolumeturneduptomaximum,”heexplains.“De-pendingonthetypeofmusic,wemeasuredanaverageoutput(sound)levelof114dBandpeakvaluesofupto125dB.IftheoutputlimitontheMP3playerisremoved–andaprogramtodothiscanbedownloaded-thepeakvaluesareupto140dB!”

“Fromthesemeasurements,andothersfromotherlaborato-ries,IwouldconcludethatMP3’sconstituteapotentialrisktohearing.Theriskdependsnaturallyonhowlongyouarelisten-ingandhowhighthevolumeisturnedup.”

Thequestionofhowlongofcourse,isdifficulttomeasureandasTureAndersenexplains,italsodependsontheindividual.“Itisthecollectedsoundenergythatgoesintotheearthatisthebestmeasureofthesounds’damagingeffect.Wealsoneedtoknowboththeexpositiontime,(thatis,howlongtheyareus-ingit)andsoundpressure.Noneoftheseareknownandwillofcoursevaryfromusertouser.Currently,ImeanthatwecannotthereforesayanythingmoreconcretethanMP3useconstitutesapotentialrisktohearing.”

indiFFerentItwouldappearthatamongmanyusersofpersonalmu-sicplayersthereisagenuinemisunderstandingoftheriskinvolved.Hearinglossissomethingthatoccursovertimesomostpeopledon’tnoticethedamagetheyaredoing.Andmanypeople,particularyoungpeople,areindifferenttothedangers.“Theyfeelinvulnerable,”saysTureAnderesen,“andarenotmotivatedtotakepreventiveorprophylacticaction.Andhearinglossissomethingoldpeoplehavesoitdoesn’tconcernthem.”

campaignAlertingpeopletotheriskinvolvedissomethingWidexCana-dahasbeendoingforthelastyear.Their‘HearingisPrecious’campaignaimstoteachyoungpeopleaboutthepreventionofnoise-inducedhearinglossandtinnitus.AccordingtoDeborahRanson,anaudiologistworkingonthecampaign,educationisthekey.“Weteachthemhowtoprotectthemselvesandmakewisechoicesforhealthylisteninghabitswhichwillhelpthemavoidunnecessaryhearingloss,”shesays.“Educationisalwaysagoodthing.Andifnooneistalkingwiththemaboutthis[hearingloss]candidly,theycannotmakeaninformeddeci-sionastohowtohandlethemselveswhenitcomestonoiseexposure.”

Aspartofthecampaign,kidshavetheopportunitytomeasuretheloudnessoftheirpersonalmusicplayersandthishasbeenagreatsuccess.

“Theresponsehasbeenterrific,”saysDeborahRanson,“withmanyteensshowingconcernfortheirhearinghealthoncetheyrealizehowloudtheyaresettingthevolumelevelontheirpersonalstereos.Manyhaveofferedtosettheoutputlimiterinordertoavoidpotentialdamage.Itgetsthemtalkingamongstthemselves,whichisverypowerfulaspeer-to-peerinteractionisagreatwaytoreinforceforoneanothertheimportanceofturningdownthevolume.”

SowhyisitimportantforcompanieslikeWidextoalertyoungpeopletothedangersofexcessivenoise?AccordingtoDeborahRanson,“itisalittlebitlikethedentistswhopromotegooddentalhygiene.Partofbeingaresponsiblecorporationcanincludeeducationofthepublicabouttheimportanceofgoodhearing.Wehavewonderfulhearingaidstohelpthosewithhearingloss.Butwealsoknowtheimportanceofgoodhearingandwecanhelptoeducatekidsandteensabouthowtopreservetheirhearing.”WidexinCanadaarenowhopingtoextendthecampaigntoadults.

140 dB AIRPLANE

PAIN BARRIER

120

125

ROCK CONCERT

100 POWER DRILL

80 BUSY STREET

60 CONVERSATION

BIRDSONG

20

CLOCK TICKING


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pUmp down the voLUmeRecentlytheEuropeanCommissionannouncedthattheywantedmanufacturerstolimitthevolumeoutputofpersonalmusicplayers,andmobilephones,toa‘safe’soundlevelbydefault,andtowarnusersiftheyturnupthevolumetooloud.

Somemanufacturers,suchasApple,havealreadycompliedandalliPodssoldinEuropearenowlimitedtoanoutputof100dB.Itshouldbenotedthough,theseproposalsconcernthedefaultsettingsofplayers;ifuserswanttooverridethedefaultsettings,theycan.AsTureAndersenpointsout,“IftheoutputlimitontheMP3playerisremoved-andprogramstodothiscanbedownloaded!-thepeakvaluesareupto140dB.”

Sowhatdoesherecommend?“Simplysaying“don’tturnituptoomuchisbadlywordedadvicebecausewhatistoomuch?”TureAndersenconcedes.“ButIcan’tgiveanyotheradvice.Enjoythemusicbutdon’tturnituptoomuch.”

ec.europa.eu/healthwww.widexconnect.ca

Eveneverydaysoundscanbeverynoisy:examplesofnoiselevelsmeasuredindecibels(dB).


TechNology

extendAbLe eArs - mAKiNg The iNAudiBle AudiBle AgAiN

WiththelaunchofInteoin2005,WidexintroducedtheAu-dibilityExtender,whichmakesuseofwhatisknownaslinearfrequencytransposition.AsclinicalaudiologistJennySmithexplains,thistechnology“picksuphighfrequencysoundsandshiftsthemtoalowerfrequencyregionwhereitmaybeeasiertohearthem.”TheAudibilityExtenderisspecificallydesigned“tohelppeoplewithhighfrequencyhearinglosshearhighfrequencysoundsagain.Thesesoundsareveryimportantforhearingthesofthighconsonantslike/s/and/t/,women sandchildren svoicesandenvironmentalsounds,”shesays.

beneFits For chiLdrenWhiletheAudibilityExtenderisbeneficialforadultsinhelpingspeechperception,itisalsoprovingtobeextremelyhelpfulinchildren’slanguagecomprehensionanddevelopment.RecentresearchbyJennySmithonagroupofschool-agechildrenconcludedthattheAudibilityExtenderprovidedsignificantbenefits.

“Iwasabletomeasurestatisticallysignificantimprovementsinformalmeasuresofbothspeechperceptionandspeecharticulationforthegroupofchildrenoverall,”shesays.“Butformetheexcitingandrewardingoutcomesofthisstudywerethemarkedimprovementsinspeechintelligibility,naturalvoicequality,ownvoiceperceptionandespeciallyconfidence,demeanourandself-assurancethatIsawintheindividualchildren.”

SotheAudibilityExtenderisnotjustsimplyaboutmakinginaudiblesoundsaudibleagain,itcanrestoreconfidencetoo.

extendabLe earsOnepersonwhocanattesttothatisAudreyFalconer,wholivesinMelbourneinAustralia,andhashadahearinglosssincebirth.Afterseveralyearsusingdifferenthearingaids,shenowusesthepopularWidexmind440behind-the-earmodel.Gen-erally,saysAudrey,theyareavastimprovement.“Ihavebettercomprehensionofwhatpeoplearoundmearesaying.AndIfollowbetterinmeetingsatwork.”

Forpeoplewithhighfrequencyhearingloss,theuniqueAudibilityExtendercanhelpmakeinaudiblesoundsaudibleagain.

Beingabletohearhighfrequencysoundsisnotjustimportantintermsofunderstandingspeechbutalsoinappreciatingsuchthingsasmusicandthesoundsofnature.Indeed,peoplewithseveretoprofoundhearinglossoftenmisshighfrequencysoundsevenwhenwearinghearingaidsandoftentalkofhear-ingbutnotunderstanding.

breakthroUgh technoLogyMakinghighfrequencysoundsaudibleagainhasbeenthesubjectofresearchforoverthirtyyears.Whiledifferingtech-niqueshavebeenproposed,thechallengehasbeentomovetheseinaudiblesoundsintolowerfrequencieswhilemakingthemsoundasaudibleaspossible.


TechNology

Audreyisemphaticaboutthebenefitsofmind440’sAudibil-ityExtenderfeature.“Itremindsmeof‘ExtendableEars’inHarryPotter.Thesearedescribedasalengthofstring,withanearononeend.Youstickthestringinyourearandtheotherendsecretlyintheroomyouwanttolistentowithoutbeingcaught,”shesays.

OnepleasingaspectoftheAudibilityExtenderforAudreyisthewayitcopeswithspeech.“OtherpeopleatworkhaveremarkedonhowIasklessforrepeats!MyhusbandsaysIunderstandthingsbetter.AndIamnowmorewillingtogotothingsIwouldpreviouslyavoid,suchasa25yearschoolre-uniondinnerwhichIwouldn’thaveattendedbefore.”

Othersoundshavebecomeaudibleaswell,andwhenshefirstusedit“therewereallsortsofsoundsthatsuddenlyappeared.Definitelyhearingthebirdssinginginthemorning–thisisnotsomethingItendedtonoticebefore.Andwhenyoupushthebuttonintheliftatworkitbeeps!Neverknewthat!Alsolotsofotherbeepsandsimilarnoisesbecameaudible.”Sometimesthough,theAudibilityExtenderisperhapstooeffective.“Ihatedigitalcamerasthatbeep,”shesays.“Noneedforsuchanannoyingnoise!”

AudreyusestheAudibilityExtenderallthetimeandmostlyincombinationwiththehearingaid’sotherfeatures–sometimeseventhosesheisnotparticularlykeenon.Forinstance,thedirectionalmicrophone,whichshedislikesbecauseitshutsoffoutsidesounds,canhelpincertainsituations–particularlywherethereisalargecrowd.“IwenttoadinneronaboatinMaythisyear,”sheexplains.“58people,fromallovertheworld,themajorityfromUSA,differentages,sexes,accents.Therewere6longtablessetoutintworows.Isatattheendofonetable,rightinthemiddleoftheboat,andturnedonthedirectionalmicrophone.Imanagedtodofairlywellatfollow-ingtheconversationatmyhalfofthetable.NotsomethingIwouldhavedonebefore!”

Forsomeusers,adjustingtotheAudibilityExtendercantakesometime.“TherehasbeenalotofdiscussionabouttheneedtogetusedtoAudibilityExtender,”saysJennySmith.“Mypersonalexperienceisthatthesettingsneedtobecustomisedtotheindividual,butoncethisprocessiscompletethepersonwilladjustveryquickly.”AudreyFalconeragrees.“InitiallytheAudibilityExtenderwasnotquitesetrightandIwouldhearadoubletone,butthiswasadjustedouteasily,”shesays.

the ae feature is available in cLear440, mind440, mind330 and inteo.


BuSiNeSS NewS


New heAdQuArTerS iN rUssiA

Thenewheadquartershasroomfortopmoderntrain-ingandlaboratoryfacilities.Amongtheseisalaboratory,wherecustomin-the-earhearingaidsandmouldsaremanufacturedbymeansoftheWidexpatentedCAMISHA(ComputerAidedManufacturingofIndividualShellsforHearingAids),whichincludesadvancedcomputermodel-lingandlasertechnology.Thenewheadquartersalsoac-commodatesavarietyoftrainingactivitiesforaudiologists.

Anditispreciselythistraining,aswellasthoroughat-tentiontodetail,thatiscentraltoWidex’successintheRussianmarketaccordingtoPalleRudPedersen.“RussiaisoneofthemainlanguagesinWidex,andwetranslatemostofourcommunicationmaterial,suchasuserinstructions,intoRussian.Itisimportantthatbothhearingaiddispens-ersandusershaveaccesstothenecessaryinformation”,hepointsout.

Butwhatthen,istheplanforthefuture?AccordingtoPalleRudPedersen,oneofthechallengesaheadistocreateahigherdegreeofacceptanceofhearingaids.“Weestimatethatapproximately10%oftheRussianpopulationhashearingloss,butonly0.2%usehearingaids.Thismeansthattherearemanypeoplewithhearinglossthatdonotdoanythingaboutit.Wewouldliketochangethat”,hesays.

WidexRussiaisheadedbyAndreyDaynyakandhasastaffof16.

WhenWidexfoundedaRussiansubsidiaryin2005,theambitionwastoreachallcornersofthecountryandpro-videserviceforallhearingaidclinicsfromKaliningradtoVladivostok.

Inacountryof17millionkm2,stretchingover11timezonesontwocontinents,andwithamixofdifferentculturesdispersedovermoderncitiesandruralcommunities,thisisnotaneasytask.

However,theopeningofthenewheadquartersafterjustfouryears,andtheincreasingdemandforWidexhearingaids,meansthatitismovingintherightdirection.

AccordingtoPalleRudPedersen,SalesDirectoratWidex,thereasonforthissuccessisthatRussianconsumershavebecomemuchmorequalityconscious–alsowithregardtohearingaids.“WithinthelastcoupleofyearsthefocusonaudiologyhasgrownsignificantlyinRussia,andthedemandforqualityhearingaidshasgoneup”,hesays.

InMay2009,WidexRussiaopenedthedoortoitsnewheadquartersneartheRedSquareinMoscow.ThisreinforcesthesuccessofWidexintheRussianmarketandmeansitwillbeabletoofferRussianhearingaiddispensersoptimumservice.

BuSiNeSS NewS


ScieNce & heAlTh

if MUsiC Be The food of love, PLAY on….

TheZenharmonicsoundprogrammefromWidexhelpshearingaidusersrelax.

ItisnotonlyShakespearewhoknewofthemoodenhancingandchangingpropertiesofmusic.Recentresearchhasbackedupwhatpeoplehaveknownsinceclassicaltimes–musicre-laxesus–andthat’swhereZencomesin.

mUsic as stress reLeaseDeepdownweallknowthatcertainmusiccande-stress,invigorate,makeushappyorbringonthetears.SotheresultsofasurveypublishedintheNewYorkTimesin2000thatan-sweredthequestion‘Whichactivitiesarepreferredforstressrelease?’werenotsurprising.

Mostpeople(64%)preferredtolistentomusic.OtherrankedactivitiesincludedwatchingTV(62%),takingashowerorbath(58%),spendingtimewithfriends(34%),lovemaking(11%),doingyogaormeditation(8%)and,abitmoresurprisingly,consultingapsychologist,counsellorordoctor(3%)–butpresumablyexcludingthebitwhereyoupaythebill!

Manyscientificstudieshaveconfirmedthis-suchasrecordedstressreductionsinDanishhospitalswheremusicwasplayed.Scientistshaveevenbeenabletocreatemusicthathelpsmon-keystochilloutaspartofresearchintohowmusicevolved.Itistherelaxingpropertiesofmusic,orfractaltonestousethejargon,thatWidexhasharnessedinZen.

Oneoftheworld’sforemostexpertsinthisfield,ProfessorRobertSweetow,UniversityofCalifornia,SanFranciscoex-plainshowthisallworks.

“Theuseofmusicforsettingandalteringmoods,arousing,andrelaxing,iscertainlynotnew.Musiciscommonlyputtouseinhomes,workenvironments,celebrations,advertise-ments,romances,movies,lockerrooms,shoppingmalls,andhospitals.Therefore,musichasbeenactively,andincreasingly,employedasatherapeutictreatmentforanumberofphysicalandpsychologicalailments.”


ScieNce & heAlTh

the "mozart eFFect"Musichelpswithconcentrationandothercognitiveprocessestoo.Thefamous‘MozartEffect’reportedonjustthispro-cess.36collegestudents,dividedintothreegroups,spent10minutesinoneofthreeconditions:listeningtoMozart’ssonatafortwopianosinDMajor,listeningtoatapeofrelaxationinstructionsorinsilence–allwhilstcarryingoutaseriesofspatial-temporalreasoningtests.TheMozartgroupachievedsignificantlyhigherscoresthantherest.

“Advancesinneuroscienceandneuralimaginghaveprovidedagreaterunderstandingoftheeffectsofmusicalstimulionthebrainandhumanbehaviourincludingstress,”saysSweetow.“Knowledgeaboutthesiteofstimulation,neuralinteractions,andtransferofneuraltransmittershelpexplainthebehaviouralconsequences,bothpositiveandnegative,ofexposuretomusic.Studieshavereportedthatlisteningtomusiccanresultinphysiologicalchangescorrelatedwithrelaxationandstressrelief.”

Sweetowcontinues:“Musicisbelievedtobehelpfulinreduc-ingstressbecauseofthewiderangeofneuralstructuresthatareactivatedincludingthecerebellum,frontallobe,limbicsystem,andauditorycortex.”

bach or the eagLesButdoweallrelaxlisteningtothesamemusic?Sweetowexplains:“Listeningtocertaintypesofmusicalstimuliinducesrelaxationandheightenedconcentrationinsomeindividuals,butnotinothers.Patternsofmusicalelements,suchasslowertempo,lowerpitch,degreeofrepetition,andlackofemotionalcontenthavebeenestablishedashavingacalming,ratherthanalertingeffect.”

Sweetowsumsup:“Activelisteningtendstoarouse,passivelisteningtendstosoothe.Activelisteningtendstodistract,passivelisteningmayallowforincreasedrelaxationandcogni-tivefunction.”

zen

Zenisarevolutionarytoneandmusicprogramthatplaysrandomharmonictonestohelpusersrelax.Userscanchoosebetweenarangeofdifferentmusicaltones(calledZenStyles)inmajorandminorkeys,andvolume,tempoandpitchcanbeadjustedtosuit.

Toensurethatthetonesarealwaysaudible,theZenprogramtakesboththeuser’sindividualhearinglossandbackgroundnoiseintoconsideration.

MUsiC to the eArs

CarolineisaLondon-basedTeacheroftheDeafandhaslivedwithahearingimpairmentallherlife.Sheisalsoanexperiencedhearingaidwearer,sowellplacedtocompareandcontrastitsperformance.

AfterinitiallythinkingthattheZenprogramwouldbe“faddyandsilly”herexperienceofithasdramaticallychangedherview.“IadmitthatIwantednottowant‘mind’,butnowIfindtheZenprogramabsolutelyinvaluable–especiallyonmywayintowork.I’mmajorlyintomyNintendoDS,soIuseZenonthebustodrownoutthechatterandnoisearoundme.ItmeansIcanconcentrateonmygamebetter!Othertimes,IuseZentohelpmetorelaxwhenI’monthetrainhome,whenI’mtiredandIjustneed‘me’time.”

Carolineconcludes:“TheZenfeaturewasanunexpectedbonusthathasreallymadeallthedifference–it’samazingwhattheselittlethingscandoforyou.Allyouneedistobealittleopen-minded!”

Whatdoestheprofessorputonthehi-fitorelaxhim?“MyfavouritemusicforrelaxingiseitherclassicalmusicsuchasJohannSebastianBachorTheEagles.Formeitisdefinitelythetempo.”


mAde iN jAPAnWidexJapanhaslauncheditsowninnovativeandsuccessfultrainingprogramme.

KazumiShirako,orMimitoherfriends,ispassionateabouttrainingandimprovingtheskillsetofWidexhearingaiddispensersinJapan,whereshehasbeenrunningtrainingprogrammesfortenyears.

Mimilovesherwork.ThisaffinitywithaudiologytrainingstartedintheUSAsomeyearsbackwhenshewasgiventheopportunitytotakeabasiccourseforadispensinglicence.“Atthattime,”saysMimi,“IrecognisedthatthisAmericantrainingprogramwaswell-organisedandpractical.Thisin-spiredmyinterestinworkinginatrainingcapacityinJapan.”TothisendMimicontinuedherstudiescompletingaMaster’sDegreeinClinicalAudiologyfromtheUniversityofMelbourne.

MimibelievesthatformalaudiologytrainingforthehearingaidindustryinJapanneedsimproving.“Thereisnoacademiccourseforaudiologyexclusivelyinouruniversities,”shesays.“Asaresult,thereisnonationallicenceforaudiologyinJapan.Anindustrycertifieddiplomaisthehighestgoalthatsalespeoplecanachieve,whichisnotsufficienttoreachtheequiva-lentofaninternationalstandardinaudiology.”

Thelackofformaltrainingresultsintwochallenges.“First,insufficientlytrainedstaffmaybeunabletoprovideaccurateassessmentsandappropriateprofessionalservicestandardsforbothhearingtestsandfittings.Second,thereneedstobemorefocusontheroleofcaringforhearingimpairedpeople.”

Shealsobelievesthatsuchaudiologicalskillswillhelpdispens-ersearnthetrustoftheircustomersandincreaselevelsofcustomersatisfaction.

ThereforeWidexAcademyprovidesitsowntrainingpro-grammesforhearingaiddispensers.ThecoursesthatMimirunsfocusontwoobjectives.“Weaimtoimproveaudiologi-calandfittingskillsaswellascommunicationandcounsellingskills.”

Thetrainingprogrammeisdividedintothreesections.Anen-try-levelcourseforthosejuststartingintheindustryteachesbasicskillsforfittingandsales.Ageneralcoursecoverseffec-tivefittingandcounselling.Finally,thereisa‘hands-on’coursethatupdatespracticalhearingtestsandshellmodificationapplications.

“Trainingtakesplaceinthedispensingoutlets.Ipreferwork-ingwithsmallgroupsasIcanbetterassessanindividual’sprogressandlevelofunderstanding.”

Hundredsofdispensershaveundertakenhercoursesovertheyears,andinthefuturetheprogrammewilldevelopandchange.“Iwouldliketoadjustthetrainingsoitbecomesstandardisedtomaintainqualitylevelsinhearingaidfittings.”Mimiadds,“Inthelong-termfutureIwanttoopenituptothosewhoareinterestedinworkingwithhearingaids-atypeofpre-occupationalcourse.”



Sheconcludes,“Providingconsistenttrainingisextremelyben-eficialingrowingthebusinessbecauseimprovingfittingandsalesskillswillincreasecustomersatisfaction.HigherqualityprofessionalserviceswilldifferentiateWidexfromcompetitorsandwillcreateimprovedcommunicationswithmedicalprofes-sionals.”



SocieTy

heAr-it FACts

•2.7millionvisitthewebsiteeachyear•Oneinsixadultssufferfromhearingloss•Therewillbe700millionhearingimpairedpeopleby2015•72,000peopletaketheonlinehearingtesteachyear

Asimpletestthattakesjustafewminutes.Numbersarereadoutwithvaryingbackgroundnoise.Answersareanalysedinsecondstogivea‘hearingscore’andwhetherahearingaidisneeded.

cAN you heAr iT?www.hear-it.orgisthebiggestonlinesourceofinformationoneverythingtodowithhearingimpairmentintheworld.In2010itcelebratesitstenthbirthday.

Hear-it.orgwasfoundedin2000andisanot-for-profitorgani-sationsetupunderthepatronageofHisMajestyKingAlbertII.BasedinBrusselsthewebsiteispublishedinEnglish,German,SpanishandFrench.

Itsstatedaimis“…toincreasepublicawarenessofhearingimpairment”.SørenPetersen,Editor-in-Chiefexplains:“Ourjobistocollect,processandcirculateallandanyup-to-dateinformationrelatingtohearingimpairmentandthehumanandsocio-economicconsequencesofhearingimpairment.Wepublishthemostrelevantinformationaswellascooperatewithnationalorganisationsandcontinueadialoguewithpublicauthoritiesandothersregardingissuestodowithhearingimpairments.”

Intenyearsthenumberofvisitorstothesitehasgrownspectacularly.In2008morethan2.7millionpeoplevisitedthedifferentlanguagewebsites.Between200,000and300,000peoplefromallovertheworldlogoneachmonth.

Andwhatdoallthesepeopledoonhear-it.org?“Lotsofpeoplestayforalongtimewhentheyvisitthewebsites,”saysSørenPetersen.“Manyreadabout20pagesandstayonthewebsiteforhalfanhourplus.Thelongestvisitslastmorethananhourandthesevisitorsread40–50pageseach.”

Thereisalsoanonlinehearingtestthatisusedby6,000peo-plepermonth.

Withoneinsixoftheworld’spopulationsufferingsomelevelofhearingloss,accordingtohear-it.org,thereisobviouslyagreatneedforinformationonthesubject.Thatequatestoabout71millionpeopleinEuropeand40millioninNorthAmericaalone.

Todealwiththeneedforinformationhear-it.orgemploysateamofjournalistswithspecialisedhearingandhearinglossexpertise.Theyreviewscientificmaterialandwritethepub-lishedarticlessupportedbyaudiologistsandscientists.

SubjectscoveredrangefromfeaturearticlesonYoungPeopleShowHearingAwarenessandProtectYourHearingintheSubwaytothepersonalstoriesofthehearingimpairedfromaroundtheworld.

Inadditiontothenewsandfeaturespublishedonthesite,hear-it.orgalsoproducesaquarterlynewsletterandregularemailupdates.Currentlythereare7,000subscribers.

Aswellasbeingpopularwiththegeneralpublic,thewebsiteisalsousedbythemediaasasourceofinformation.Thesitehasafrequentlyvisitedpresscentrethatformsthesourceofalargenumberofarticlesonhearingaroundtheworld.

SowheredoesPetersenseehear-it.orggoingfromhere?“Wewillendeavortocontinueourtraditionofinitiatingscientificresearchonthepersonal,socialandeconomicconsequencesofhearingloss.Andweaimtomakeourvoiceheardmoreinthecorridorsofpower.”


ProfeSSioNAl PArTNerS

JoSePh e. BerTiN – A sMALL institUte with greAt strengthAnyonewhohasreadAsterixcomicbooksknowsthatpeopleinNorthernFrancerefusetobedic-tatedto.Thisisalsotrueofl’ecole d’audioprothèse Joseph e. bertin,aninstituteattheuniversityofRennes,wheretheyhavechosenadifferentap-proachfortrainingaudiologists.Whilesubjectssuchasaudiology,acousticsandknowledgeabouthear-ingaidsareofcoursepartofthecurriculum–themainfocusisonteachingthestudentshowtousetheirearsbetter.

Theinstitutewasonlyestablishedin1996;neverthelessithasalreadymanagedtogainareputationasoneofthecountry’smostcovetededucationalinstitutionsforaudiologists.

Butwhatthen,istherecipeforthemagicpotionthatinafewyearshasmadetheinstitutesopopular?Accordingtopeda-gogicalconsultantStéphaneLaurent,oneoftheingredientsisthestrongfocusthattheinstituteputsontherelationshipbetweensoundandtheindividual.“Soundisthe‘element’ofaudiology.Itisimportanttousthatthestudentshaveafunda-mentalunderstandingofhowsoundaffectshumanbeings”,hestresses.

Theinstitutethereforeoffersseparateclassesinsoundduringwhichthestudentslearntolistenforexamplebyexploringdif-ferentsoundenvironments–anexercisethathelpstosharpentheirsenseofwhatitmeanstohavehearingloss.

Theideaisnotjusttogivethestudentsabetterbasisforunderstandingacousticsandsignalprocessing,butalsotoenhancetheirsensitivitytosoundandunderstandingofsoundimpressions,allowingthemtobetterhelpandcounselpeoplewithhearingloss.

ThisaspectishighlyappreciatedbyFlorieMoisdon,whostud-iesattheinstitute.“Beingunabletohearthemostfamiliarsounds–andhereIamnottalkingabouttheproblemofcom-municating–orperceivingcertainsoundsasoverwhelming,canhavebigconsequencesforthehearingimpairedindividu-als.Attheinstitutewelearntoempathisewiththissituation”,shesays.

Theinstituteconsidersitveryimportanttosharpenthestu-dents’criticalsense–alsoonatechnicallevel.Today’shear-ingaidmarketischaracterisedbyawideselectionofhi-techinstruments,anddetermininghowtheinstrumentsdiffermaybedifficultandtime-consumingforeventhemostexperiencedaudiologists.

Thereforetheinstitutenowoffersacoursethataimstoteachstudentstodeveloptestprotocolsandevaluateontheirownwhatdifferenthearingaidshavetoofferandhowtheymaybenefittheuser.

Moreovertheinstituteoffersclassesincommunicationaswellashumanitiesandsocialsciences:.“Thestudentscanlearnalotfromthesecoursesonapersonallevel.Thecourseshelpustothinkaboutthemeaningofourprofessionanditsimportancetosociety”,FlorieMoisdonsays.


ProfeSSioNAl PArTNerS

Thereisnodoubtthatthespecialmixoftraditionalandmoreunconventionalsubjectsofferedattheinstituteworks.AsFlorieMoisdonputsit,“Theschoolprovidesuswiththetechni-calandtheoreticalfoundationthatweneedtocarryoutourprofession.Butitalsogiveseachofussomethingextrabyat-tachingweighttothehumanapproachtotheprofession.”

Readmorewww.fougeres.cci.fr/ecoleaudioprothese

widex PArtnershiP

In2009WidexFranceestablishedatechnicalpartnershipwiththeJosephE.Bertininstitute.InsupportoftheinstituteWidexhasdonatedsomeaccessoriessuchasa‘Kemarmannequin’,whichisanadvancedmodelusedforaudiologicaltests.

“Widexplacesgreatemphasisuponscientificcooperationandre-searchpartnerships”,explainsSørenSvendsen,GeneralManagerofWidexFrance.“TheFrenchaudiologistsconstituteastrongprofession,wherethecornerstoneislaidduringthreeyearsofintensivestudies.AtWidex,wehaveemployedtwoaudiologistsandatechnicaldirector,whoalsocontributetothetrainingoffutureandexistingaudiologistsinFrance”.


BuSiNeSS NewS

widex eSTABliSheS New sUbsidiAries

In2009,WidexestablishedseveralnewsubsidiariesinSouthAfrica,SouthKorea,Ireland,SwedenandDenmark.Thegoalofthenewcompaniesistostrengthencustomerserviceandaccommodatelocalneedsinthesecountries.

InAsia’sfourthbiggesteconomy,SouthKorea,thehearingaidmarketisinrapiddevelopment,whichhasentailedanincreasedneedforbettercustomerserviceandaudiologicaltraining.InSweden,themarkethasalsochangedconsiderablysincetherecentreformsandthedecentralisationofhearingcareservices.

Widexhaschosentoinvestdirectlythroughtheestablishmentofnewsubsidiariesinthesecountriesinordertostrengthenthecompanies’servicestohearingcarespecialistsandusers.

“Hearingaidsarenotstandardconsumerproducts,”empha-sisesMikeDittmann,VicePresidentforSalesatWidexA/S.“Todispensehearingaidsdemandsthatyouprovideahighlevelofserviceintermsofaudiologicaltraining,fittingandfine-tuning,aswellasaquickturn-aroundtimeforanyrepairsandproductadjustments.Thedecisiontoestablishthenewsubsidiariesstemsfromourwishtodelivermoreoptimalsupporttoourdispensers,sotheycangivethebestservicetohearingaidusers,”hesays.

DeliveringthebestserviceisalsotheaimofWidex’newsubsidiaryinIreland-amarketthathastraditionallybeensupportedbytheUK.WithWidexIreland,Irishcustomersareensuredfasterandmoretargetedservice.

AndinDenmarkWidexhaschosentostrengthentheirlocalcustomersupportwiththeestablishmentofaseparateDan-ishsubsidiary,cateringforDanishpublicclinicsandprivatedispensers.

renewAL And ContinUitY

Atthesametimeascreatingrenewal,Widexhasalsoplacedgreatimportanceonensuringcontinuityinrelationtoourlocalpartners.

”Forthenewsubsidiarieswehavechosenmanagerswhocom-bineexperienceandsolidmarketknowledgewithnewvisions,”saysMikeDittmann.

TheSouthAfricanandKoreansubsidiariesarerunbytwodynam-icCEO’swithvastexperienceintheindustry,namelyPreakantNaginandJaysonJeonrespectively.InSweden,MartinGyllanderleadsthecompanywhileWidexIrelandandWidexDenmarkareleadbyMortenSandahlSørensenandMichaelWestermann–bothexperiencedWidexexportmanagers.


SPoNSorShiPS

cAmPAigN To helP The elderly iN hong Kong WidexHongKongissponsoringacampaignaimedathelpingelderlyhearingimpairedpeoplewithfinancialdifficulties.

InHongKong,therearenogovernmentsubsidiesforacquiringhearingaids,andinsuranceisnotpopularamongtheelderly.Manydonothavearegularincomeafterretirement-yettheymaynotbeeligibleforsocialsecurityandhavetorelysolelyontheirchildren’ssupport.

Tohelpthem,WidexHongKongdecidedtolaunchthe“DefineHearingfortheAged”hearingaiddonationcampaignincooperationwiththeHongKongSocietyfortheAged(SAGE)andtheHearTalkFoundation(HTF).Throughthiscampaign,Widexisdonatingfivehundredfullydigitalhearingaidsandwillprovidebothdiagnosticaudiologicaltestsandpost-fittingservices,includingunlimitedlifetimeadjustments.

ThecampaignstartedinJune2009andwillrununtilSeptem-ber2010.

2009 widex sPortsMAn ANd sPortswoMAn of The yeAr TerenceParkinofSouthAfricaandAksanaPetrush-enkaofBelaruswereselectedasthe2009WIDEXSportsmanandSportswomanoftheYearbytheIn-ternationalCommitteeofSportsfortheDeaf(CISS).

BothnomineeswonseveralmedalsintheSummerDeaflympics2009inTaipei.Thirty-yearoldTerenceParkinwonnolessthan7goldmedalsintheswim-mingeventsandabronzemedalinthecyclingevent.Twenty-six-yearoldAksanaPetrushenka’saccom-plishmentsincludedfourgold,onesilver,andonebronzemedalinswimming.

WidexhassupportedtheCISSanddeafsportssince1997whentheOlympicsforthedeafandhardofhearing,Deaflympics,washeldinCopenhagen.



norWaY Medisan A/S oman, Sultanate of National Optical Centre paKistan Rehabilitation Centre for Hearing Impaired panama Widex Panama paragUaY Centro Auditivo SRL perU Panadex S.A. philippines Ledesma Audiological Center poland Widex Polska Sp. z.o.o. portUgal Widex - Reabilitação Auditiva, Lda. romania Sonorom SRL rUssia 000 “Widex” saUdi araBia Basha Medical Group serBia INTER-SLUH singapore Widex Singapore Pte Ltd sloVaKia Slovtón sloVenia Slusni Aparati - Widex d.o.o. soUth africa Widex South Africa spain Widex Audífonos S.A. sri lanKa D.S. Jayasinghe Opticians (Pvt) Ltd. sUdan Sudanese Hearing Center sWeden AB Widex sWitZerland Widex Hörgeräte AG sYria TEBA Medical Equipment taiWan Melody Medical Instrument Corp thailand D MED Hearing Center Co,.Ltd. tUnisia C. M. Acoustiques tUrKeY Elektromediks Karabeyoglu Ltd. UKraine ReOton United araB emirates Widex Emirates Hearing Care United Kingdom Widex UK UrUgUaY Audilux Usa Widex Hearing Aid Co. Inc. VeneZUela Instituto Auditivo Widex S.A. Vietnam Tan Hung Co. Ltd. Yemen National Hearing Center

algeria Widex Algérie eurl argentina Widex Argentina SA aUstralia Widex Australia Pty Ltd aUstria Neuroth AG BelarUs LTD Arnikatrade BelgiUm Veranneman b.v.b.a. Bosnia herZegoVina Widex Slusni Aparati d.o.o BraZil Centro Auditivo Widex Brasitom Ltda. BUlgaria ANKA - Anka Peeva canada Widex Canada Ltd. chile Realtone LTDA chile UFO Electronics Ltda. china Widex Hearing Aid (Shanghai) Co. Ltd. colomBia Widex Colombia costa rica Tecnomédica S.A., Clínica Dínamarca croatia Microton d.o.o. cYprUs Audiology Center M.K.Stavrinos cZech repUBlic Widex Line s.r.o. denmarK Widex DK A/S dominican repUBlic, the Widex Dominicana ecUador Guillermo Muñoz Robles egYpt Widex-Egypt estonia Indium Ltd. finland Widex Akustik OY france Widex France f.Y.r.o.m Otomedical SkopjegermanY Widex Hörgeräte GmbH ghana Krispat Ear Center greece D. Chryssikos & Co. gUYana Roger Viapree hong Kong Widex Hong Kong Hearing & Speech Centre Ltd. hUngarY Widex-H Kft. india Widex India Private Limited indonesia Melawai Hearing Aid iran Persia Samak ireland Widex Ireland israel Steiner Hearing Instruments italY Widex Italia S.P.A Jamaica Siredan Enterprises Ltd. dba Caribbean Hearing Center Japan Widex Co., Ltd. Jordan Queen Alia Foundation for Hearing and Speech KaZaKhstan Almaton-2 KenYa Beam Hearing Centre Korea Widex Korea Ltd. KUWait Al-Shammary Hearing Center latVia SIA Dzirdes ServissleBanon Beeco liBYa Widex Libya lithUania Surdotechnika JSC malaYsia Top Hearing Care Centre malta Beacon Healthcare Ltd. meXico Distribuidora de Equipo Audiológico S.A. de C.V. mongolia Mr. Munkhbilegt Liiraa morocco Widex Maroc namiBia Windhoek Hearing Aids netherlands Veenhuis Medical Audio B.V. neW Zealand Widex New Zealand Ltd.



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