New | Germany’s medical tech tie-up with Science Park should make rival equipment makers worry
German medical technology companies have their sights set on leveraging Hong Kong’s expertise in manufacturing
The Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corp has teamed up with a German medical technology cluster to help European companies tap the city’s manufacturing expertise and gain access for their products to the mainland Chinese market.
The agreement signed on Thursday between the Medical Valley European Metropolitan Region Nuremberg (EMN), Hong Kong Biotechnology Organisation (HKBIO) and the Hong Kong Medical and Healthcare Device Industries Association (HKMHDIA) involves a budget of€€3 million (HK$26.5 million) from the German government to promote cooperation between medical technology companies in both locations.
“We have an existing MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) infrastructure in Germany but new technology is coming up. The question for us is whether the market size is big enough to develop the product in Germany? I think not,” said Matthias Hiegl, member of the managing board of Medical Valley EMN.
Hiegl said it would benefit Germany’s small and medium-sized medical technology companies to work with Hong Kong firms in both product development and marketing, which have longstanding ties with manufacturers and distribution companies on the mainland.
The initiative stands to benefit from China’s 13th Five Year Plan, which targets the development of robots for surgery, medical imaging technology, wearable devices and equipment for traditional Chinese medicine.
Based outside Nuremberg, Medical Valley EMN is a non-governmental organisation that supports innovation in medical technology and devices among small and medium-sized enterprises.