Purdue Honors Biomet Co-Founder
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowPurdue University will name the headship of the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering after the late Dane Miller, a co-founder and former chief executive officer of Biomet Inc. The move is the result of a gift from Miller’s wife, Mary Louise Miller.
The amount of the gift was not disclosed. Dane Miller founded Biomet, now known as Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ZBH), in 1977. The company became a $2 billion enterprise before being acquired by Zimmer Holdings Inc. in a $13 billion deal last year.
"Dane Miller was one of the greatest engineers and job-creators our nation has known. And one of the great human beings – unpretentious, unaffected, kind to all around him," said Purdue President Mitch Daniels. "Purdue is honored to be associated with his name and memory."
George Wodicka, the founding head of the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, will assume the title of Dane A. Miller Head of Biomedical Engineering. He says Biomet’s partnerships with the Weldon School helped the biomedical engineering program grow.
"There was a natural resonance between Biomet and our educational and research programs," said Wodicka. "Dane’s support helped make biomedical engineering at Purdue an industry-ready program, which is one of our strengths. For this world-renowned leader in orthopedics, and friend of Purdue, to be forever associated with the Weldon School through this named headship is a tremendous honor for us."
Dane Miller passed away in February 2015. Mary Louise Miller said using the gift to empower the Weldon School and enable future advances in biomedical engineering is a "very fitting tribute" to her late husband’s memory.