Our Team

Chris Karshafian

President and Chief Executive Officer

As the founder of MD Precision and Sonele Inc., Chris has a proven track record of assisting start-up companies in facilitating financing and solving complex technical and manufacturing issues. Chris specializes in the “D” part of R&D, and uses his broad range of industry networks and strategic partnerships to mitigate risk and shorten the critical path to commercialization and success.

Eric Rieder

Vice President of Operations

An innovative and professional Senior Mechanical Engineering Manager, Eric has a history of significant achievement in a number of areas. He is skilled in the development, manufacturing and commercialization of products in a leading-edge environment. With 25+ years in the medical device industry, Eric is particularly strong in managing development of high-tech, high-precision electro-mechanical systems. He also has experience in other industries including aerospace and compressed gases. Eric is a graduate of the University of Waterloo; Bachelor of Applied Science, Mechanical Engineering Co-op Program, and a member of PEO Since 1989.

Sivan Karshafian, CPA, CA

Chief Financial Officer

Sivan joined MD Precision as Chief Financial Officer in September 2004. In October 2014 she also took on the role of Chief Financial Officer for Sonele Inc. Sivan oversees the accounting, business support, financial planning and analysis, treasury and tax functions. Before her management role in industry, Sivan worked in public accounting as a manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers in the Financial Services sector. She obtained her Chartered Accountancy designation in 2007 from the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants after graduating with a Bachelor of Commerce Degree from the University of Toronto.

Varak Kalian

Business Development Engineer

Varak brings a strong background in high-tech product and business development, bridging the gap between engineering and organizational growth strategies. He has worked closely with start-ups in the MedTech industry to accelerate prototype development and commercialization. This includes developing and implementing strategic growth opportunities within MD Precision, by creating long-term valuable relationships with industry professionals and companies. His engineering career has specialized in mechanical design and manufacturing in areas of medical devices and automotive sector manufacturing. Varak holds a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Toronto, with an MBA from Quantic School of Business and Technology. Varak has also received a Certificate in Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Small Business from the University of Toronto.

Albert Yu

Quality Assurance Manager

Claudio Irrgang

Electronics Engineering Manager

Claudio has 20+ years of consultation and engineering in electronics and software development. His expertise includes analog, digital, and microprocessor designs, as well as developing C# applications and C for embedded designs. In addition, Claudio has a tremendous background of taking products to market, through end-to-end product development and management of software, firmware and hardware engineering teams.