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France. We also invest through acquisitions in technologies developed by third parties that have the potential to expand the markets in which we operate. We maintain close working relationships with physicians and medical personnel in hospitals and universities who assist us in product development efforts. The total costs of worldwide Company-sponsored research, development and engineering activities relating to the development of new products, improvement of existing products, technical support of products and compliance with governmental regulations for the protection of customers and patients were $471, $462 and $394 in 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively. Research, development and engineering expenses as a percentage of sales were 5.4%, 5.6% and 5.4% in 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively. The spending level in 2012 as a percentage of sales decreased primarily due to the termination of all development of the OP-1 molecule in late 2011. Regulation Our businesses are subject to varying degrees of governmental regulation in the countries in which operations are conducted, and the general trend is toward increasingly stringent regulation. In the United States, the Medical Device Amendments of 1976 to the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and its subsequent amendments, and the regulations issued or proposed thereunder, provide for regulation by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the design, manufacture and marketing of medical devices, including most of our products. Many of our new products fall into FDA classifications that require notification of and review by the FDA before marketing, submitted as a 510(k). Certain of our products require extensive clinical testing, consisting of safety and efficacy studies, followed by pre-market approval (PMA) applications for specific surgical indications. The FDA's Quality System regulations set forth standards for our product design and manufacturing processes, require the maintenance of certain records and provide for inspections of our facilities by the FDA. There are also certain requirements of state, local and foreign governments that must be complied with in the manufacture and marketing of our products. The member states of the European Union (EU) have adopted the European Medical Device Directives that form a single set of medical device regulations for all EU member countries. These regulations require companies that wish to manufacture and distribute medical devices in EU member countries to meet certain quality system requirements and obtain CE Marking for their products. We have authorization to apply the CE Marking to substantially all of our products. In addition, we comply with the unique regulatory requirements of each of the countries in which we market our products. Initiatives sponsored by government agencies, legislative bodies and the private sector to limit the growth of healthcare expenses generally and hospital costs in particular, including price regulation and competitive pricing, are ongoing in markets where we do business. It is not possible to predict at this time the long-term impact of such cost containment measures on our future business. In addition, business practices in the healthcare industry have come under increased scrutiny, particularly in the United States, by government agencies and state attorneys general, and resulting investigations and prosecutions carry the risk of significant civil and criminal penalties. Employees At December 31, 2012, we had approximately 22,010 employees worldwide. Certain international employees are covered by collective bargaining agreements. We believe that we maintain positive relationships with our employees worldwide. Executive Officers of the Registrant Information regarding our executive officers appears under the caption "Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance" in Item 10 of this Report. Available Information Our main corporate website address is www.stryker.com. Copies of our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Annual Reports on Form 10K and Current Reports on Form 8-K filed or furnished to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will be provided without charge to any shareholder submitting a written request to our Corporate Secretary at our principal executive offices. All of our SEC filings are also available free of charge on our website within the "Investor-SEC Filings & Ownership Reports" link as soon as reasonably practicable after having been electronically filed or furnished to the SEC. All SEC filings are also available at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. 4 Dollar amounts in millions except per share amounts or as otherwise specified