Becton Dickinson lands in Jacksonville after reporting earnings

Becton Dickinson flew from Morristown Municipal Airport to Jacksonville International Airport on May 18th, a 1-hour-55-minute hop in its Falcon 7X, tail N294X. The flight arrived just after noon, touching down at a city that is home to one of the company's key acute-care customers and a proving ground for its newest product.

Jacksonville is where Mayo Clinic Florida — a flagship account for Becton Dickinson — is based, and the company recently launched the BD® CentroVena One™ Insertion System, the first all-in-one central venous catheter insertion device, which received FDA 510(k) clearance and was accepted into the FDA Safer Technologies Program, per a company press release on April 29th. With the Q2 earnings call fresh — Becton Dickinson reported revenue of $4.7 billion and raised full-year adjusted EPS guidance to $12.52-$12.72 on May 7th, per the company's investor relations site — a visit to a major clinical partner in the rollout of a breakthrough product fits the pattern of hands-on management the CEO Tom Polen has shown.

The trip continues a busy month for Becton Dickinson's aviation department. Recent flights show visits to El Paso during the FDA warning letter issue at its ChloraPrep facility, and to Salt Lake City and Las Vegas on earlier legs. The Jacksonville stop is the latest in a series of business calls, not a board meeting or a conference, but a quiet customer-facing visit during a pivotal product launch.