MICROWORKS INC.
Dawn McIver and the MicroWorks team have cultivated a successful path backstage as microbiology consultants in the pharmaceutical and medical device industries.
“Our work is fulfilling and serves a need behind the scenes that most people never even think about. We get to use science to ensure that medications that people take are safe and effective and that new products get to market to help patients in need,” Dawn says. “We get the opportunity to help companies with regulatory issues, so they can continue to provide products to the patients that need them.
“We have helped a number of companies develop testing methods that have allowed them to bring new products to market that have helped people with medical issues, such as cancer and newborn babies with underdeveloped lungs.”
The company was created in 1996 after Dawn began her career in the industry.
“I started working in the food industry doing quality control testing on food products. Then I got a job at a pharmaceutical company in the quality control laboratory,” she says. “That’s when I received my background in what’s required from the FDA and regulatory perspective.”
She transitioned that knowledge into MicroWorks to help companies meet the regulations at their facilities.
“Manufacturing facilities where drug products are made are a controlled environment,” she says. “We help monitor the facilities to ensure they meet the specifications. We are an FDA-regulated business and are inspected ourselves to show that we are testing at the standards required by the FDA.”
In 2008, a small laboratory was opened to support MicroWorks’ patented sampling kit that is used for bacterial contamination testing. It is sold internationally.
“Swab samples can be taken both before and after cleaning to determine effectiveness of the company’s cleaning procedures or to determine the location of potential contamination,” she says. “With funding and support by Peoples Bank and the Regional Development Company, we were able to launch the laboratory business and build the facility into what it is today.”
Dawn works alongside her husband, Ed, who joined the company in 1999 as vice president. He is in charge of the business and financial sides. Natalie Behm is another long-term employee. She joined the team in 1999 as a consultant and today, is the Laboratory Quality Assurance Director.
“We attribute our success to the hard work of all our employees. We get a lot of work done with a small team of very dedicated people,” she says. “We try hard to be fair to our employees and to respect their talents as well as their free time.
“We give our clients fair prices and sound advice that is honest and straight-forward, so they can succeed and grow. We develop relationships with our clients to help them grow and prosper and we grow along with them.”
For the future of MicroWorks, the team is looking forward to additional growth and services.
“We are planning to add another testing laboratory within our current facility next year to focus on testing for Biotech companies,” she says. “We have also installed an isolator system in our sterility suite and plan to launch that testing capability in the next year.”
MicroWorks Inc.
2200 W. 97th Place in Crown Point
219-661-8620
mwiconsulting.com