ONWARD Medical Ranks in Top 15 Percent Globally for Corporate Sustainability

EcoVadis silver medal recognizes Company's environmental and social impact

Demonstrates ongoing commitment to integrating sustainable business practices

EINDHOVEN, the Netherlands, Dec. 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ONWARD Medical N.V. (Euronext: ONWD), the medical technology company creating innovative spinal cord stimulation therapies to restore movement, function, and independence in people with spinal cord injury (SCI), today announces it has been awarded a silver medal by EcoVadis, the world’s largest provider of business sustainability ratings. The award places ONWARD Medical in the top 15% of companies assessed by EcoVadis in the past 12 months.

The EcoVadis assessment evaluates 20+ sustainability criteria across four core themes: Environment, Labor & Human Rights, Ethics, and Sustainable Procurement. More than 130,000 companies globally have been rated by EcoVadis.

ONWARD Medical’s sustainability strategy is centered on five core principles that support nine United Nations Sustainable Development Goals¹ (SDGs):

• Minimizing our environmental footprint (SDGs 12 and 13)
• Innovating for the underserved (SDGs 3, 9, and 10)
• Partnering with patient groups (SDGs 3, 9, and 10)
• Maintaining high ethical standards (SDG 16)
• Attracting and retaining top talent (SDGs 4, 5, and 8)

"Earning the EcoVadis silver medal validates our commitment across all critical sustainability measures - from environmental stewardship to ethical labor practices," said CEO Dave Marver. "As we pioneer new treatments for spinal cord injury, we're demonstrating that medical innovation and corporate responsibility can go hand in hand."

The Company’s Annual Sustainability Summary for the full year 2023 is available on the Company website in the Investors section. Please to access the Summary.

To learn more about ONWARD Medical’s commitment to partnering with the SCI Community to develop innovative solutions for restoring movement, function, and independence after spinal cord injury, please visit .

Note: All ONWARD Medical devices and therapies, including but not limited to ARC-IM, ARC-EX, ARC-BCI, and ARC Therapy, alone or in combination with a brain-computer interface (BCI), are investigational and not available for commercial use. ONWARD, ARC-EX, ARC-IM, ARC-BCI, and the stylized O-Logo are proprietary and registered trademarks of ONWARD Medical. Unauthorized use is strictly prohibited.

About ONWARD Medical

ONWARD Medical is a medical technology company creating therapies to restore movement, function, and independence in people with spinal cord injury (SCI) and movement disabilities. Building on more than a decade of scientific discovery, preclinical, and clinical research conducted at leading hospitals, rehabilitation clinics, and neuroscience laboratories, the Company has developed ARC Therapy, which has been awarded ten Breakthrough Device Designations from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

ONWARD ARC Therapy is targeted, programmed spinal cord stimulation designed to be delivered by the Company’s external ARC-EX or implantable ARC-IM platforms. ARC Therapy can also be delivered by the Company’s ARC-BCI platform, which pairs the ARC-IM System with brain-computer interface (BCI) technology to restore movement after SCI with thought-driven control.

Use of non-invasive ARC-EX Therapy significantly improved upper limb function after SCI in the global pivotal Up-LIFT trial, with results published by Nature Medicine in May 2024. The Company has submitted its regulatory application to the FDA for clearance of the ARC-EX System in the US, and is preparing for regulatory submission in Europe. In parallel, the Company is conducting clinical studies with its ARC-IM Therapy, which demonstrated positive interim clinical outcomes for improved blood pressure regulation following SCI. Other ongoing clinical studies focus on using ARC-IM Therapy to address mobility after SCI and gait challenges in Parkinson’s disease, as well as using the ARC-BCI platform to restore thought-driven movement of both upper and lower limbs after SCI.

Headquartered in the Netherlands, the Company has a Science and Engineering Center in Switzerland and a US office in Boston, Massachusetts. The Company is listed on Euronext Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam (ticker: ONWD).

For more information, visit ONWD.com, and connect with us on LinkedIn and YouTube.

For Media Inquiries:

Aditi Roy, VP Communications

For Investor Inquiries:

Amori Fraser, Finance Director

Disclaimer

Certain statements, beliefs, and opinions in this press release are forward-looking, which reflect the Company’s or, as appropriate, the Company directors’ current expectations and projections about future events. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve several risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties, and assumptions could adversely affect the outcome and financial effects of the plans and events described herein. A multitude of factors including, but not limited to, delays in regulatory approvals, changes in demand, competition, and technology, can cause actual events, performance, or results to differ significantly from any anticipated development. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release regarding past trends or activities should not be taken as a representation that such trends or activities will continue in the future. As a result, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release any update or revisions to any forward-looking statements in this press release as a result of any change in expectations or any change in events, conditions, assumptions, or circumstances on which these forward-looking statements are based. Neither the Company nor its advisers or representatives nor any of its subsidiary undertakings or any such person’s officers or employees guarantees that the assumptions underlying such forward-looking statements are free from errors nor does either accept any responsibility for the future accuracy of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release or the actual occurrence of the forecasted developments. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.

¹ United Nations. “The 17 Sustainable Development Goals.” UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs – Sustainable Development. /goals