AirLife
AirLife is a US-based medical device manufacturer of consumable anesthesia and respiratory care products (endotracheal tubes, closed suction systems, humidification, nebulizers, manual resuscitators) serving acute care hospitals, EMS, surgery centers, and home care providers across 97+ countries through owned manufacturing and distribution plus OEM/private label services.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1981
- HeadquartersGrand Rapids, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What AirLife does
AirLife, formerly SunMed, is a US-headquartered (Grand Rapids, MI) medical device company specializing in consumable anesthesia and respiratory care products. Founded in 1981 and rebranded to AirLife in September 2023, the company manufactures and distributes a comprehensive portfolio across airway management (endotracheal tubes including the SunMed, Flex-Tip, and Microcuff sub-brands; the Air-Q supraglottic airway), respiratory care (Ballard closed suction systems, DuoTherm humidification, NebuTech nebulizers, VixOne), emergency and resuscitation (Broselow Pediatric Emergency System, AirFlow manual resuscitators), anesthesia circuits and masks, patient monitoring (CO2 Easy colorimetric indicator, Vital Signs products), and home care oxygen/aerosol products. Notable proprietary technologies include the DuoTherm dual-walled insulated humidification circuits, the Ballard 7Day turbulent cleaning closed suction system with MR-safe design, Microcuff ultra-thin polyurethane endotracheal cuffs, and the FDA-cleared MYOTouch muscle stimulator for pediatric anorectal malformation repair.
The company operates 9 owned manufacturing sites and 14 distribution centers totaling more than 1.4 million sq ft across North America (Grand Rapids, Tucson, Phoenix, El Paso, Louisville, Redlands, Chicago, Atlanta), Mexico (Juarez, Nogales, Mexicali, Magdalena), China (Shenzhen, Zhuhai), and Europe (Hulst, Helsinki), serving customers in 97+ countries. AirLife generates revenue primarily through hardware sales of branded consumables to healthcare providers (acute care hospitals, EMS, surgery centers, home care), supplemented by OEM and private label manufacturing services for partner medical device companies and exclusive distribution partnerships (notably Armstrong Medical for Broselow Tape and HEINE for visionPRO video laryngoscopes). Products are sold through authorized distributor networks and direct contracts, with GPO access secured through Vizient. Since Frazier Healthcare Partners acquired a majority stake in 2021, AirLife has executed an aggressive consolidation strategy, completing acquisitions of Vyaire Medical's Respiratory & Anesthesia Consumables Business (May 2023) and Avanos Medical's Respiratory Health Business including BALLARD, MICROCUFF, and endOclear (October 2023), and has subsequently expanded capacity via a new 326,018 sq ft Phoenix distribution center (February 2024) and a manufacturing automation partnership with Brills (April 2026).
AirLife firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- AirLife
- Legal name
- SunMed Group Holdings, LLC
- Website
- https://myairlife.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1981
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- AirLife is a US-based medical device manufacturer of consumable anesthesia and respiratory care products (endotracheal tubes, closed suction systems, humidification, nebulizers, manual resuscitators) serving acute care hospitals, EMS, surgery centers, and home care providers across 97+ countries through owned manufacturing and distribution plus OEM/private label services.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
AirLife industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Medical Devices (Anesthesia and Respiratory Care)
- NAICS
- Surgical and Medical Instrument Manufacturing (339112), Medical Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing (3391), Surgical Appliance and Supplies Manufacturing (339113), Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (3345)
- SIC
- Surgical & Medical Instruments & Apparatus (3841), Wholesale-Medical, Dental & Hospital Equipment & Supplies (5047), Electromedical & Electrotherapeutic Apparatus (3845)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Anesthesia & Respiratory Gas Delivery Equipment (Breathing Circuits, Vaporizers, Gas Mixers) (HLAHAGAK)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Anesthesia & Airway Management Equipment (Workstations, Laryngoscopy, Ventilation adjuncts) (HLAHADAJ), Noninvasive Ventilation Interfaces & Consumables (Masks, Tubing, Humidifiers, Filters) (HLAHAGAG), Inhalation & Nebulization Devices (Nebulizers, Spacers, Inhaler Accessories) (HLAHAGAE)
Keywords
Where AirLife is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Grand Rapids
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices20 records
Markets served
AirLife business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Medical Device Sales: Sale of consumable anesthesia and respiratory care products including endotracheal tubes, laryngoscopes, suction systems, breathing circuits, masks, and monitoring equipment to healthcare facilities
- OEM and Private Label Manufacturing: Design and manufacturing services for other medical device companies under OEM or private label arrangements, including engineering, tooling, and production capabilities
- Distribution Partnerships: Revenue from distribution agreements including exclusive distribution partnerships such as Broselow Tape (Armstrong Medical) and HEINE visionPRO video laryngoscopes
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Direct purchase through authorized distributors |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels9 records
AirLife product offering
Product offeringCore offering
AirLife designs, manufactures, and distributes consumable medical devices for anesthesia and respiratory care, including endotracheal tubes, laryngoscopes, closed suction systems, breathing circuits, masks, humidification systems, manual resuscitators, and patient monitoring consumables. The company serves healthcare facilities across acute care, EMS, surgery centers, and home care settings, and offers full-service OEM and private-label manufacturing for partner medical device companies.
Product overview
AirLife is a comprehensive medical device manufacturer offering a unified portfolio of consumable breathing products for anesthesia and respiratory care. The company provides products across multiple categories including Airway Management, Respiratory, Emergency, Anesthesia, Resuscitation, Patient Monitoring, and Home Care. Key branded product lines include Ballard (closed suction systems), SunMed and Flex-Tip (endotracheal tubes), Microcuff (pediatric-focused ETTs), and Air-Q (supraglottic airways). Notable products include the DuoTherm Humidification System with dual-walled circuits, the 7Day Closed Suction System with turbulent cleaning technology, the Broselow Pediatric Emergency System for medication dosing, and the FDA-cleared MYOTouch Muscle Stimulator for pediatric anorectal malformation repair. The company also offers the AirLife Secure supply chain assurance program and AirLife Explore interactive digital platform. Manufacturing capabilities span 9 global sites with 1.4M+ square feet, including OEM and private label services for partner companies.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Ballard: Closed suction systems and respiratory care products
- Salter Labs
- SunMed
- Vital Signs
- Ethox Medical
- Ventlab
- Westmed
- Microcuff
- Flex-Tip
- Air-Q
- IntuBrite
- GreenLine
- Broselow
- DuoTherm
- NebuTech
- MYOTouch
- AirLife Secure
- AirLife Connect
Products and services
- DuoTherm Humidification System Active humidification system with dual-walled insulated circuits that delivers therapeutic levels of humidification at greater gas flow ranges. Features pre-set and free modes for neonatal through adult patients. Compatible with invasive, non-invasive, and high flow oxygen therapy systems.
- Ballard 7Day Closed Suction System Closed suction catheter system for patients with artificial airways requiring suction for more than 72 hours. Features turbulent cleaning technology with up to 7 days use per catheter. MR Safe and not made with DEHP or latex. Available in US only.
- MYOTouch Muscle Stimulator FDA-cleared muscle stimulator specifically designed for Posterior Sagittal Anorectoplasty (PSARP) and laparoscopic repair of anorectal malformations (ARM) from birth through adolescence. Helps surgeons accurately identify muscles essential for successful anorectal reconstructions. Developed in partnership with Dr. Philip Frykman.
- Broselow Pediatric Emergency System Length and weight-based reference tool specifically designed for pediatric emergency care. Provides pre-calculated medication doses to eliminate errors in dosing and administration. Gold standard in pediatric emergency medicine since 1986. Distributed in the US exclusively through Armstrong Medical.
- HEINE visionPRO Video Laryngoscope Modular, reusable video laryngoscope system distributed through partnership with HEINE. Used with a variety of single-use blades and suitable for routine use during any intubation procedure.
- Flex-Tip Endotracheal Tubes Endotracheal tubes with atraumatic centered tip design featuring soft, flexible, rounded tips that glide through airway anatomy. Available in extensive sizes and styles including cuffed, uncuffed, preformed, and reinforced options.
- Microcuff Endotracheal Tube Pediatric-focused endotracheal tubes featuring ultra-thin polyurethane (PU) cuff with low-pressure sealing that can reduce risk of airway trauma. Puncture strength nearly double compared to conventional cuffs.
- Air-Q3 Supraglottic Airway All-silicone, anatomically curved supraglottic airway device designed for both routine and difficult airway situations. Available in multiple sizes for adult and pediatric use.
- AirFlow Manual Resuscitator Single patient use manual resuscitation and ventilation bag available in four sizes/volumes. Designed with integrated pressure manometer for accurate ventilation monitoring during emergency resuscitation.
- Sterile Water for Inhalation, Flexible Hanging Container Flexible hanging container for sterile water for inhalation. Innovative design prevents confusion with traditional IV bags, designed without DEHP plasticizers, with a 24-month shelf life and gravity-based collapse for hassle-free use.
- Modudose Unit Dose Solutions Single-use vials containing sterile water or normal saline (0.9% sodium chloride) for respiratory care and tracheal suction procedures. Features twist-and-pull-off tops with graduations in 0.5 mL increments.
- CO2 Easy Colorimetric Indicator Colorimetric CO2 indicator used to confirm proper endotracheal tube placement by detecting exhaled carbon dioxide.
- AirLife OEM and Private Label Manufacturing Full-service OEM and private label manufacturing capabilities for consumable anesthesia and respiratory devices. Includes engineering, design, molding, welding, cleanroom/sterile manufacturing, and fulfillment services for partner medical device companies.
Quantifiable outcome
- Reduced backorders and distributor stockouts through AirLife Secure program
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use AirLife
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
AirLife technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
AirLife partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.
- BrillscoreKorean robotics company Brills signed a contract with AirLife to supply automated packaging systems for nasal cannulas and oxygen tubes at AirLife's Mexico plant. The systems incorporate multi-robot vision systems and AI quality control with six production lines.
- Dr. Philip Frykman / GPSTEPcorePartnership with Dr. Philip Frykman, internationally recognized pediatric surgeon, to develop the MYOTouch Muscle Stimulator (FDA cleared for ARM repair). GPSTEP is a 501(c)(3) organization bringing MYOTouch to pediatric surgeons in developing countries; AirLife donates portion of proceeds plus devices to GPSTEP.
- Armstrong MedicalcoreArmstrong Medical is the exclusive US distributor for Broselow Tape, the gold standard pediatric emergency reference tool originally developed by James Broselow MD and Robert Luten MD.
- HEINEcorePartnership for distribution of HEINE visionPRO video laryngoscope, a modular reusable system with single-use blades suitable for routine intubation procedures. VisionPRO available for ordering via AirLife starting July 1, 2024.
- Avanos MedicalflagshipAcquisition of Avanos Medical's respiratory health business including BALLARD, MICROCUFF, and endOclear product lines, adding complementary brands and R&D expertise plus two manufacturing facilities.
- OralKleenminorStrategic distribution partnership for oral care products.
- Vyaire MedicalflagshipAcquisition of respiratory and anesthesia consumables business of Vyaire Medical, uniting complementary businesses with trusted brands and diversified capabilities.
- VizientcoreVizient is the nation's largest provider-driven healthcare performance improvement company. AirLife serves as contracted supplier through Vizient GPO, receiving Supplier Partner of the Year and Medical/Surgical Excellence Awards in 2024.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights7 records
AirLife competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Teleflex: Teleflex is a direct competitor in airway management (LMA, endotracheal tubes) and respiratory consumables, serving the same hospital, EMS, and surgery center customers with overlapping product lines.
- ICU Medical: Through its Smiths Medical acquisition, ICU Medical is a direct competitor in airway management, anesthesia delivery, and critical care consumables, overlapping closely with AirLife's portfolio.
- Ambu: Ambu is a direct competitor in single-use airway management, anesthesia, and patient monitoring consumables with comparable product breadth in hospital and EMS channels.
- Intersurgical: Intersurgical is a direct peer in anesthesia and respiratory consumables, including breathing circuits, filters, masks, and airway management products sold to similar hospital and home care customers.
- Fisher & Paykel Healthcare: Fisher & Paykel is a direct competitor in respiratory care, particularly humidification, high-flow oxygen therapy, and patient interfaces, overlapping directly with AirLife's DuoTherm and Salter Labs lines.
- Vyaire Medical: Vyaire Medical remains a direct competitor in ventilation and respiratory diagnostics after divesting its consumables business to AirLife, sharing many of the same hospital customers.
Broad incumbents
- Medtronic: Medtronic is a broad incumbent across respiratory, patient monitoring, and airway management with significantly greater scale and R&D resources, competing with AirLife in hospital and surgery center channels.
- Dräger: Dräger is a broad incumbent in anesthesia workstations, ventilation, and patient monitoring, serving the same OR and ICU customers with overlapping consumables and capital equipment portfolios.
- GE HealthCare: GE HealthCare is a broad incumbent in patient monitoring and anesthesia delivery, competing with AirLife's Vital Signs monitoring and anesthesia consumables businesses across hospital systems.
Others
- Salter Labs (brand within AirLife): Salter Labs operates as a sub-brand within AirLife, historically a direct competitor in oxygen and aerosol therapy; relevant as a legacy peer relationship retained through the Avanos acquisition.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
AirLife social profiles
Digital presenceAirLife compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
AirLife financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
AirLife leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
AirLife subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
AirLife funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
AirLife M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about AirLife
What does AirLife do?
AirLife designs, manufactures, and distributes consumable medical devices for anesthesia and respiratory care, including endotracheal tubes, laryngoscopes, closed suction systems, breathing circuits, masks, humidification systems, manual resuscitators, and patient monitoring consumables. The company serves healthcare facilities across acute care, EMS, surgery centers, and home care settings, and offers full-service OEM and private-label manufacturing for partner medical device companies.
Is AirLife a public or private company?
AirLife is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was AirLife founded?
AirLife was founded in 1981. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is AirLife based?
AirLife is headquartered in Grand Rapids, United States, in the North America region.
How does AirLife make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Medical Device Sales are the primary driver. The others are OEM and Private Label Manufacturing and distribution Partnerships.
Who are AirLife's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Teleflex, ICU Medical, Ambu, Intersurgical, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare and Vyaire Medical. Broad incumbents are Medtronic, Dräger and GE HealthCare. Salter Labs (brand within AirLife) is listed as an others.
Does AirLife have an API?
No public API is recorded for AirLife.
What industry is AirLife in?
AirLife's product category is Medical Devices (Anesthesia and Respiratory Care). Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAHAGAK, Anesthesia & Respiratory Gas Delivery Equipment (Breathing Circuits, Vaporizers, Gas Mixers), with a secondary code of HLAHADAJ, Anesthesia & Airway Management Equipment (Workstations, Laryngoscopy, Ventilation adjuncts). Its NAICS code is 339112 and its SIC code is 3841.