The Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a significant loss of human life around the world and posed an unprecedented threat to public health, healthcare infrastructure, food systems, and the workplace. COVID-19 has resulted in over six million fatalities worldwide. The pandemic’s economic and social effects are devastating and that includes:
-
Tens of millions of people are at risk of falling into extreme poverty.
-
Hundreds of enterprises are on the verge of shutting down.
-
Nearly half of the world’s workers are on the verge of losing their jobs.
Impact of COVID-19 on the medical device industry
Indian Medical equipment manufacturers have been impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. The industry has faced numerous challenges, including financial constraints, during the past three years, in addition to supply chain disruptions.
Despite the problems, this prolonged crisis has also given rise to enormous untapped opportunities. For example, formerly, advanced and complicated medical gadgets were only used in larger multi-specialty hospitals, but COVID-19’s restrictions on treatment and patient movement have led to their adoption in even smaller healthcare facilities.
Before the crisis, trade and production of medical supplies were intertwined, with advanced industrial countries such as the United States and Germany specializing in relatively high-tech medical devices, while low-cost production hubs such as China and Malaysia were leading producers of less technologically sophisticated devices.
Many Indian manufacturers have benefited from the post-pandemic disruptions, as they have been able to grow globally and overcome difficulties that had previously existed. This simply strengthened India’s position as a viable alternative for the manufacturing of medical devices.
India as a key market for medical devices export
The Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW) and the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) conducted the following steps to enhance medical device exports in the country:
-
Re-examination and implementation of Schedule MIII (draft guidance on good manufacturing practices and facility requirements)
-
System for export labeling, clinical evaluation, and adverse reporting clarification, state licensing authority to extend free sales certificate validity from two to five years to allow exports
-
Creation of a list of manufacturers with export licensing for easy access by regulatory authorities.
Several new manufacturers began manufacturing in the country as a result of the pandemic, the reasons being:
-
Safe Intellectual Property Rights and Data Security Policies
-
Human resources with a high level of expertise and low operating costs
-
Production-linked incentive (a program that encourages companies to increase their production)
-
Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan and Make in India
-
A robust ecosystem to scale manufacturing
-
Parks for medical devices
Indian medical devices are manufactured maintaining international quality and come at attractive prices. With the latest technological growth in India and restricted travel due to pandemics, Indian manufacturers are integrating advanced mobile applications and cloud solutions to bring store floors online. According to International Data Corporation, 77% of manufacturers perceive digital transformation as an opportunity and only 23% regard it as a risk, making it a top priority for the majority of companies. As a result of this trend, businesses are digitizing their storefronts, warehouses, and supply chains to improve quality, flexibility, and efficiency.
Digitalization will be the key enabler of accurate forecasting and greater visibility across the supply chain and this is where the B2B platforms, like Medzell, come into play.
Medzell to your aid
Medzell is a brainchild of the thought of how we could add value to the healthcare needs and infrastructure of the world during these testing times. We saw this epidemic as a chance to better assist our neighbourhood and promote high-caliber medical products internationally.
Medzell fills the gap in the market with a virtual platform that allows Indian medical device makers to list their products and international distributors to search for cost-effective medical devices. Medzell is a B2B platform that is created specifically to connect Indian medical device makers with international distributors.
International buyers dealing with medical devices who want to engage with Indian manufacturers will find Medzell to be a better networking experience. Medzell provides economical and high-quality Made-in-India medical devices. We have an efficient and dedicated support team who will help throughout the process i.e. from your enquiry stage to business closing.
The medical device sector has greatly suffered as a result of the import and export restrictions during the COVID struggle, which has put the healthcare sector at the forefront of the conflict. During this difficult period, Medzell would want to bridge the gap between supply and demand, and our team has been firmly supporting the import/export medical devices sector.
References:
