Catching the Next Wave of Medical Devices Manufacturing
Industry Players Urged to Forge Ahead with New Strategies & Technologies
24 October 2018, Kuala Lumpur – In conjunction with the Malaysia Medical Device Expo 2018 (MyMEDEX 2018) the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) organised a panel session on the ‘Next Wave of Medical Devices Manufacturing: Shaping the Industry of the Future’ at the Malaysian International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC), Kuala Lumpur today.
“The medical devices industry continues to be one of the high potential growth sectors under the 11th Malaysia Plan’s Mid Term Review. Industry players, especially local companies, are urged to adopt new strategies and embrace emerging technologies. To stay competitive, companies need to prioritise productivity, accelerate automation and innovation, undertake more R&D and implement best industry practices. Through engagements such as this, MIDA hopes that more local compnies will be able to familiarise themselves with emerging trends that have a direct impact on the dynamics of the medical device industry,” said Datuk N. Rajendran, who moderated the panel session.
The session featured panellist from Vigilenz Medical Devices, Cochlear Malaysia, Siemens Malaysia and the Medical Device Authority (MDA).
“The need for agility, speed, quality, and compliance is becoming more important than ever in the medical device industry. With over 200 manufacturers in this industry alone in Malaysia, the time is now for these companies to embrace digitalisation so that they can effectively develop innovative medical devices and achieve faster time-to-market for the competitive edge against global manufacturers, especially If we are to maintain our leading position of exporting over 90% of our locally-manufactured medical devices, and boost foreign investors’ confidence towards our industry from their RM1.6bil (72.7%) worth of investment contribution,” said Siemens Malaysia President & CEO Mr Indranil Lahiri.
At the session, Mr. S.Choudhury, the CEO of Vigilenz Medical Devices Malaysia, a wholly owned Malaysian company that supplies medical and surgical products said, “For the country to embrace Industrial Revolution 4.0, we should pay much more attention to enhancing the skill sets of our university graduates in this realm of digitisation.”
Mr Samuel Pooranakaran, Director of Cochlear Malaysia Operations, a global leader in implantable hearing solutions, highlighted on the untapped human resources and manufacturing infrastructure for medical device manufacturing in Malaysia.
MYMEDEX 2018, held from 23 to 25 October, is the first initiative by the Medical Device Authority (MDA) supported by MIDA, to highlight the latest innovative technologies and advances of global medical devices. Recognising that medical device is one of the biggest industries in global healthcare, the expo offers a unique opportunity for all stakeholders to be immersed in an insightful one-stop centre for medical devices solutions.
MDA, an entity under the Ministry of Health to ensure that medical devices in Malaysia are of high quality, effective and safe, was represented by Mdm Ir. Sasikala, Director, Policy, Code & Standard Division during the panel session. “In maintaining the competitiveness of the industry, MDA will assist the local manufacturers to comply with the medical devices regulatory requirements,” assurred the MDA Director.
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About MIDA
MIDA is the government’s principal promotion agency under the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) to oversee and drive investments into the manufacturing and services sectors in Malaysia. Starting operations in 1967 with a relatively small set up of 37 staff, MIDA has grown to become a strong and dynamic organisation of over 700 employees. Headquartered in Kuala Lumpur Sentral, MIDA today has 12 regional and 20 overseas offices. MIDA continues to be the strategic partner to businesses in seizing the opportunities arising from the technology revolution of this era. For more information, please visit www.mida.gov.my and follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, @OfficialMIDA.
For more information, please contact:
Puan Balkish Mohd Yasin
Director, Life Sciences & Medical Technology Division, MIDA
Tel.: 03-2267 3458 | Email: [email protected]
