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Medical Device Industry Wants Govt. To
Ensure
Quality Of Components & Raw Materials
With a view to ensure steady growth of medical device
sector in the country, the industry wants the government to take immediate
measures to formulate rules that will help in regulating and monitoring the
components and raw materials required for it.
The industry experts stressed that absence of a designated
regulatory machinery in this segment is leading to a lot of quality issues for
the medical devices affecting their growth and reputation. This they pointed out
is because the quality of the end product to a large extent depend on the
quality of the raw materials and components used by the end manufacturers.
According to D L Pandya, an industry expert from Gujarat, the
changing regulatory set up in the country is slowly forcing all the medical
devices companies to comply with the regulations. While these changes are for
the greater interest of the industry, he stressed that absence of any kind of
regulation or quality parameters on raw materials and components segment is
putting pressure on the medical device industry.
“Today the onus of ensuring the quality of these products
depend on the medical device industry alone, when it should be the government
who should take requisite steps to regulate the market. While we do appreciate
the initiatives taken by the government to regulate our industry, we fail to
understand why the government is not concerned about the supporting industry as
they are the suppliers for us making it very essential to regulate them as
well,” informed Pandya who is also the programme co-ordinator of the National
Biomedical Engineering Society.
He further pointed out that at present the industry has only
two options available with them, either they have to themselves manufacture
these end products essential for the medical devices as per their required
standards or import it from other countries to ensure that they are as per the
quality requirements. All said and done, these solutions, according to Pandya
are not viable and feasible options for the industry, which largely comprises of
small scale manufactures, due to the large capital investments and skill
deployment required.
“The dynamics of the supply chain market is completely
different from that of medical device industry and government has to look into
this factor very seriously, as this is a grave issue that the industry has been
grappling with for a long time. They just cannot keep on putting the burden of
ensuring the supply of quality raw materials and components on us, especially
when the industry already has other issues to deal with. Unless these factors
are taken into consideration it will be very difficult for the medical device
industry in the country to grow,” he added.
Based on article by Suja Nair Shirodkar, Mumbai July 19, 2013 in
Chronicle Pharmabiz, Ref:
http://www.pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails.aspx?aid=76549&sid=1
Medical Device Packaging
World demand for medical device packaging is projected to
increase 5.9% annually to £16.6bn ($25.7bn) in 2017. Western Europe, the US
and Japan will continue to account for almost 60% of the total market, according
a new report by Freedonia. Demand in these countries will expand below the
average global pace as intensifying health care cost containment pressures and
fierce multiple supplier competition weaken growth.
The fastest expanding medical device packaging markets
will emerge in India, Mexico, China, and the more prosperous Africa and
Middle-East countries, where diversification, expansion, and stricter regulation
of medical product industries are raising the quality and functional
requirements of containers and related accessories.
Freedonia believes that pouches and trays will continue to
lead sales based on adaptability to cost effective infection-resistant and
security-enhanced formats. Multiple compartment trays will build sales as they
virtually eliminate risk of staff errors and spread of infectious agents during
the preparation of products for surgery and various other patient procedures.
Clamshell packs will also fare well in global marketplace as
they match or exceed all advantages of rigid trays while offering greater
protection against product damage.
Bags and boxes will realise below average gains in demand.
The report says that increasing use in contact lens packaging will boost the
market for blister packs.
(Ref:
http://www.prw.com/subscriber/newscat2.html
?cat=1&channel=130&id=3310)
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