ANNUAL REPORT 2008/09 - Sonova

Sonova also sets itself apart from its industry peers
by developing its products and services in a way that is
systematically and effi ciently geared to the needs of
hearing specialists and end users. Every hearing system
fi rst needs to be correctly fi tted by the hearing specialist
in order to maximize its performance and ensure that
it brings a real value-added contribution to the end user.
The success of this service provided by the hearing specialist
is not only dependent on the right products off ered,
but also on the quality and effi ciency of the consulting.
With its two core brands Phonak and Unitron, Sonova’s
main activity is the wholesale business. Here the Group
Companies in an individual country supply the products
indirectly to end users through independent retailers,
chains or state institutions. The Group also owns some
retail outlets in selected countries. This enables the company
to gain direct access to the end user and not only
indirectly via distribution partners. This is important,
as Sonova is able to get a better idea of customer requirements,
so that it can incorporate these ideas when it
comes to the development of the next product generation.
The experiences and knowledge gained from its own
retail activities also put Sonova in a better position to
support its wholesale customers more eff ectively.
Sonova: leader in technology
At Sonova, the main focus of innovation lies in technology
and product development. Within the Group this is
mainly undertaken by the research and development
departments, which are deliberately separated from each
other in organizational terms. In research, Sonova is
active in all areas of technology relevant to both hearing
systems and communication technologies. In many
joint research projects with leading international universities,
innovative advances are made in the principles
16 INNOVATION
of audiological research, signal processing and communications
technology, as well as in the fi eld of acoustics
and materials science. While the focus in research is mainly
on more long-term trends, the development department
concentrates on bringing new functions and improved
systems to market maturity as quickly as possible. A central
task in development is to implement technologies
in a way that allows them to be used effi ciently in diff erent
product families.
In the hearing healthcare industry, a high-performance
hardware and software development platform is the foundation
for new and enhanced hearing system functions.
Sonova’s platform is the industry’s fastest, most powerful
and cost-effi cient development model, which is being
continuously refi ned. The CORE platform introduced in the
fi nancial year 2007/08 is already the fourth generation,
and is recognized as the industry’s most advanced audio
processing platform. 6 high-performance processors
and over 8 million transistors ensure that the hearing system
can execute around 120 million operations per
second. In the fi nancial year 2008/09 Phonak managed to
establish its entire portfolio of hearing systems on the
CORE platform. In the current fi nancial year Unitron will
also launch the fi rst CORE-based products on the market.
Sonova’s platform concept is unique to the industry.
All business activities, not only research and development
eff orts, are focused on the whole platform and not just
on single products.
Hearing system innovations
Portfolio
In the fi nancial year 2008/09 the emphasis was not only
on the launch of individual products but most importantly
on rounding off Sonova’s portfolio. Under the Phonak
brand, Sonova is the only market player to off er a com-