Industry Leaders Announce Plans to Tackle Emerging Markets

According to a report by GBI (Global Business Intelligence) Research, the global market for diagnostic imaging will exceed $24.4 billion by 2016. The demand for this and other technologies in emerging markets such as Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) is prompting major industry players to refocus their energies away from the United States and Europe to markets where the government is increasing health care spending and personal income is on the rise. Most companies have been moving in this direction for several years, but in the past few weeks, GE Healthcare, Boston Scientific Corp. and DePuy Orthopaedics Inc. all have unveiled reorganization plans that represent a hefty investment in the BRIC markets.

On Aug. 1, DePuy discussed one step—the establishment of an advanced education and research institute at the Mahindra World City—in its long-term vision for India. Michael del Prado, company group chairman, Johnson & Johnson Medical Asia Pacific, estimated that there are about 5 million people with orthopedic diseases in India—meanwhile, the number of orthopedic surgeons in that country is only about 1,000. To tackle the market, del Prado said the company will address the “4 As”—accessibility, awareness, affordability and adaptability.

“The facility will set a benchmark in adopting newer technologies with advanced medical equipment to train and teach the students, surgeons and doctors,” said A. Vaidheesh, managing director of Johnson & Johnson Medical, India.

DePuy expects more than 1,000 students and surgeons to be trained at the institute in the first year. According to del Prado, the Institute will aim to bridge the skill gap in general health care but particularly will focus on beefing up the number of orthopedic surgeons. The institute will offer basic and advanced surgical courses, as well as distance-learning opportunities by partnering with faculties around the world. All courses will be certified by the Medical Council of India, and those that involve training by use of DePuy devices and technologies will be subsidized.

DePuy’s announcement follows those of two other industry leaders in late July. Their focus, however, is China.

On July 25, GE Healthcare announced the transport of its X-ray business from Wisconsin to Beijing, China, to better meet the needs of high growth markets there and support the Chinese government’s Primary Care initiative. The move also will enable the firm to offer healthcare providers a domestic X-ray business cycle, from engineering and development to sales and service. The announcement was of little surprise, considering GE’s actions over the past year: The company committed to helping grassroots medical institutions in China, and investing $2 billion in the market as a whole. GE Healthcare’s actions were triggered by the Chinese government’s commitment to health care. According to company spokesperson Benjamin Fox, the transition is already in progress and is expected to be complete in the next several months.

“By aiding the government’s already robust nationwide primary care efforts, GE is committing to help improve health care quality and access in both urban and rural China,” said Rachel Duan, president and CEO of GE Healthcare China.

Not to be outdone, Boston Scientific announced plans on July 27 to invest $150 million to strengthen its China business, calling it “one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing medical device markets” (talk about an understatement—the company’s research indicates the market currently exceeds $1 billion and is growing about 20 percent annually). The investment will pay for a factory to build products specifically for the Chinese population as well as a training center for Chinese healthcare providers. The decision will result in about 1,000 new jobs in China. Executives said the plan will help boost China revenues to more than $500 million by the end of 2016.

Siemens AG is another company that intends to become better acquainted with emerging markets. The company plans to drive growth not only in the BRIC countries, but also in Chile, Indonesia, Mexico, Colombia, Poland, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam. Siemens’ portfolio, which includes Industry, Infrastructure & Cities, and Energy segments in addition to healthcare, might be especially well positioned to address the increasing demand in these markets.

“The emerging markets are still the growth engines of the global economy,” said managing board member Roland Busch. “With its strong local presence and the right products, Siemens is excellently positioned to capture a share of the growth taking place in these markets.”

The company already has achieved above-average growth—revenue from continuing operations more than doubled between fiscal 2005 and 2010 to 22 billion euros, an annual growth rate of 17 percent. Meanwhile, in the same period, GDP grew by an average of 6.1 percent. The number of company employees working in emerging markets also increased significantly during that time, going from 46,000 in 2005 to 85,000 in 2010.

What does all this mean for the developed markets, the United States and Europe, where hospitals and healthcare providers are bound by tight budgets? The answer just might be the transfer of innovation that for years helped America retain its competitive edge in the global economy.