LSL Industries, Inc. Profile
When medical supplies manufacturer LSL Industries (LSL) was founded in
1983, “98 percent of the market was controlled by four companies,” sales
executive Artis Carroll said. Even though 
LSL, a small minority-owned
manufacturer based in Chicago, produced everything from plastic bedpans and
midstream specimen kits to drainage bags and catheterization sets, it lacked
name recognition, and often found itself losing business to large
manufacturers that were already established among hospitals.
As the company continued to try to grow, LSL also found it had trouble conveying the quality of its products because it could not trademark the sterilized medical trays – complete with the necessary tools for a typical surgical procedure – that it sells to hospitals. Then in 2002, LSL partnered with Premier, Inc. Premier officials knew that the hospital supply field lacked diversity, not just in the number of organizations, but in who was running them.
Since 2002, LSL Industries has been awarded four Premier contracts for OR basin kits & laceration trays, surgical sponges, skin scrub trays, urologicals - irrigation trays and IV start kits/central line kits. As a result of these contracts, LSL has been able to offer Premier Members savings of anywhere from 10 percent to 25 percent. Methodist Hospital of Dallas, Texas, and the Aurora Healthcare System in Milwaukee are prime examples of hospitals that have benefited from these savings.
The Premier contracts have made a real difference for LSL and its workforce. “Our employee base is derived primarily from the low income groups within our local community,” said Ash Luthra, President of LSL Industries, Inc. As a direct result of the contracts they have been awarded by Premier, LSL has hired more than a dozen additional employees from these low-income areas.
The company is also looking to expand its operations. “As an organization, we have been able to grow from a 10,000-foot manufacturing facility to an 80,000-foot facility,” Carroll said. This expansion has allowed LSL to equip three additional production lines with high-speed, state-of-the-art computerized equipment at a cost ranging in the seven figure range. This added significantly to the company’s production capacity and allowed LSL to meet new and increased product demands. This increase, coupled with LSL’s ability to participate in Premier’s strategic planning sessions, has allowed the company to reinvest in itself, become a more efficient manufacturer, and, ultimately, close the gaps between them and their larger competitors.
Growth of LSL Industries Since 2002
| Growth Area | 2002 | 2007 |
| Manufacturing facility | 10,000 Square Feet | 80,000 Square Feet |
| Employee Size | 22 | 82 |
| Network Reach | Regional | National |
Through their partnership with Premier, LSL had a new way to efficiently reach hundreds of independent, non-profit hospitals across the country, which increased their national name recognition dramatically. “These contracts have given us national exposure which is significant for the growth of small diversity companies such as ours,” Carroll said. “We have shown that we can be successful in the marketplace when given the opportunity.”
“From an outside perspective it might look as though we are only getting a small benefit from Premier in comparison with some of the larger manufacturers. But the truth is that those dollars go a lot further and mean a lot more in a small company like ours,” Carroll said.
The greatest benefit of working with Premier, however, is the financial security that their contracts provided for LSL. “We commend Premier’s all-inclusive policy, and our employees thank Premier for creating an environment of long-term stability for them and their families,” Luthra said.
For more information about Premier or to apply for a Premier contract please visit https://premierinc.com/about/suppliers/index.jsp.