Messe Frankfurt India Joins Hand with Andhra Pradesh MedTech Zone (AMTZ) to Launch MedTech Innovation Forum in India

Press Note/January 2021

With an objective to draw attention to the growth opportunities and latest developments in the Indian Medical device industry, Messe Frankfurt Trade Fairs India has joined hands with India’s first integrated medical devices manufacturing ecosystem – AMTZ. The joint cooperation aims to provide further impetus to indigenous manufacturing of medical devices and bring forward innovations and specialised medical tools and technologies that can attract domestic and global investors.

As the nation takes steps to develop its healthcare infrastructure including an ecosystem for its medical device industry, the launch of MedTech Innovation Forum aims to create a collaborative platform for medical device manufacturers, innovators and technology experts to exchange advancements and innovations for the development of the Indian medical devices industry.

Slated from 7 – 8 October 2021 in Visakhapatnam, the first edition of this key business event is expected to bring industry leadership together with government and medical consultants to address integral challenges of import dependency, need for technology collaborations as well as medical technology advancements that can be introduced in the industry. The forum has received strong support from apex industry bodies - AIMED (Association of Indian Medical Device Industry) and ADMI (Association of Diagnostics Manufacturers of India) ADMI.

Mr Raj Manek, Managing Director, Messe Frankfurt Trade Fairs India Pvt Ltd said: “India’s response and agility in scaling up manufacturing of medical devices together with strong initiatives by the government on making the sector ‘Atmanirbhar’ makes it opportune time to introduce a forum that focuses on bringing medical technology innovations to the forefront. We are proud to combine strengths with AMTZ in this goal and are confident that the critical insights on MedTech advancements and challenges will enable the sector to create an environment for improved trade and investment opportunities.”

The Indian medical devices market, which accounts for more than 13% of the Asia-Pacific (APAC) medical devices market, is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 7.5% through 2025. Dr Jitendra Sharma, MD & CEO, Andhra Pradesh MedTech Zone elaborated: “The industry is poised for significant growth in the next five years, however, it is still largely import-driven with 90% of sophisticated devices being imported from around the world. The dialogue with medical device manufacturers and innovators will open up opportunities to empower the country’s strong healthcare and medical devices industry in the post COVID-19 era.

Dr Sharma further added that AMTZ aims to put the Indian medical device industry on the global map by encouraging sector innovations and we are happy to join hands with Messe Frankfurt in this endeavour as their expertise and reach across sectors in India will help bring in key stakeholders together.”

Messe Frankfurt India has been actively involved in tracking industry growth and addressing rising concerns on counterfeit products in the pharmaceutical industry through its Pharmasafe India conference and webinar series. In August 2020, the Indian subsidiary held the first virtual edition of the Medical Device Innovation Summit to address growing demand for specialised medical equipment and is now closely working with industry leaders in the sector to launch Medtech Innovation Forum as a large-format Confex in October 2021.

Touted as India’s largest medical devices manufacturing park, the Andhra Pradesh Medtech Zone (AMTZ) has dynamically contributed to the fight against COVID-19 pandemic through large-scale manufacturing of domestic rapid testing kits, PPE and ventilators. As a scientific infrastructure supported by the government, the zone intends to reduce import dependence and lower cost of healthcare by an estimated 40 to 50 per cent and is taking active steps to develop R&D, testing labs and provision for acceleration for start-ups.

The joint cooperation between Messe Frankfurt India and AMTZ will play a crucial role in highlighting India’s strengths in medical technologies, promote indigenous manufacturing, ease the sector’s reliance on imports and empower the country’s strong healthcare and medical devices.