Market Opportunity
HKPB Scientific has developed TM – CMC to deliver cost and clinical benefits to medical device companies seeking competitive advantage in the lucrative medical device coatings and drug delivery market. The market size and growth rates for three markets niches, hip and knee implants, stents and pacemakers are presented in the table below. Other segments of the medical device coatings and drug delivery market are of significant size and exhibit similar growth rates. TM – CMC services unmet clinical needs in all of these market niches, in addition to providing substantial cost benefits for medical device manufacturers. HKPB will engage with leading companies in the medical device arena in partnership arrangements.
In addition HKPB will commence manufacture of various apatites that are extensively used in the biomedical and biotechnology industries for applications such as orthopaedic cements and protein separation. The market niches for these unique biomaterials are large and growing at attractive rates. HKPB will and sell these apatites directly to the companies operating in these industries.
| Market Niche | Annual Market Value (€ millions) | AAGR (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Hip and Knee Coatings | 263 | 12.3 |
| Stent Coatings | 254 | 15.3 |
| Pacemaker and Defibrillator Coatings | 114 | 15.3 |
| Apatites | 500 | 15 |
Market Drivers
The increased demand for medical devices and biomaterials such as apatites is primarily driven by the aging population globally with the percentage of the population of developed countries over the age of 60 expected to grow from 20.7% in 2007 to 34.4% in 2050 (World Economic Forum Report, Jan 2007). Like the joints and tissues they replace implants also have a fixed lifetime as a result of normal wear and tear. A hip implant for example has a life span of 10-15 years assuming no complications, but as life expectancies increase around the world so too must the functioning life span of implants. This is coupled with increasing expectations in relation to the quality of life that can be achieved post-surgical operations. Simply put implants are increasingly required to function as effectively as the biological systems they substitute and last longer.
The implications of the growth in an increasingly demanding demographic for economies around the world is in the main driving the dynamics of the health and medical device markets with increasing pressure on OEM’s (Original Equipment Manufacturers) from health insurers and government bodies to deliver better value for money through innovation and productivity improvements in an industry where margins have traditionally been high.