Medical Device Outsourcing: 3 Market Trends and Opportunities

Editor's Note: Take a look at our featured best practice, Healthcare Business Capability Model (1-page PDF document). A business capability model for a Healthcare company. To be used as a core document for Enterprise Architects and EA work. Also very valuable to Business Architects and Business Architecture projects/programmes.

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The global medical devices outsourcing market is one of the most profitable niches around. Projected to reach a market size of USD$ 229.40 billion by 2027, this market is driven to expand by factors like globalization, the increasing pervasiveness of chronic illnesses, the growing geriatric population, and the increasing adherence to regulations.

The profitability of this market will continue to soar. And, for manufacturers who intend to ride this wave of opportunity, it’s best to stay two steps ahead of the competition so you can find contract manufacturing partners you can depend on. If you are still shopping around for a qualified and reliable partner, you may visit this page for medical device manufacturing.

To keep your edge over other medical device designers and manufacturers, here are three market trends and opportunities you can use for your medical device strategies:

1. Class II Non-Invasive Tools and Machines

If you own one of those smartwatches, then you’ve had a glimpse of the tip of non-invasive medical devices’ iceberg. Vital signs and other physiological processes can now be measured and monitored using devices that use sensors. In the near future, more devices may be able to monitor bodily functions through microneedles, nanobubble vapors, and nanotechnology to measure temperature, cholesterol, and other indicators through the surface of the eye.

Non-invasive procedures, especially given present circumstances, mean less exposure to infections and less pain to users.

2. Rise Of Geriatric Population

In a 2019 report created by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat, 703 million elderly persons were 65 and above in 2019, and foresee this number will double by 2050.

This phenomenal increase in life expectancy means opportunities for medical device businesses to design devices that help improve the quality of life of the members of this population. Devices that can aid this population’s physical and cognitive abilities are something worth checking. However, it is essential to note that in designing devices for this type of market, ease of use, simplicity, and intuitiveness are some of the factors that will decide a device’s marketability. Therefore, it is significant to have a good product strategy to create innovative and user-friendly devices that will most probably result in increased profitability.

3. Increasing Chronic Illness

Aside from supporting the elderly population, one of the growing issues of the world is the increasing prevalence of chronic illnesses. Diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, among others, are two significant examples of diseases prevalent among the masses and not confined to falling only on the elderly anymore.

The advancement of technology is an excellent fuel for more innovative devices those with chronic illness can use even in the comfort of their own homes. The current state of healthcare opens up opportunities for machines to become more accessible to users without physically going to hospitals or clinics.

The emergence of In Vitro Diagnostic devices (IVDs) that can be used at home is an example of a trend that’s become rapidly popular in the medical device niche. Designing diagnostic devices like these means giving peace of mind to its users who are avoidant of public spaces like hospitals and clinics for fear of acquiring infections.

Another opportunity for businesses that would like to leverage outsourcing their medical device production is implantable medical devices. As mentioned earlier, cardiovascular diseases are not exclusively found in boomers. Some people as young as in their early 20s and 30s may also be vulnerable to suffering from heart diseases. Although pacemakers have already been in the market for more than a couple of decades, other wearable devices such as implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) or drug-eluting stents may mean more lives can be saved, all thanks to wearable medical devices that have intuitive functions. 

For Future Reference

Medical device outsourcing is an excellent way for medical device designers and manufacturers to keep up with the demand to focus more on exploring innovations and new technologies to improve their products and services.

With all this research, designing, manufacturing, and testing, it’s not surprising how costs can be one limiting factor to the growth explosion of medical device companies. Moreover, no matter what type of device you design, it’s paramount to ensure its users’ physical safety and cybersecurity.

Data Security is one big challenge in the health care industry. If there’s one significant common factor in all these trends, it’s collecting private information from users and administrators—data may be quickly exploited if it falls into the wrong hands.

If you’re looking into further exploration of the mentioned trends above, just ensure that no matter which trend you focus on, you must also emphasize to your business partners and customers that you put a lot of weight into keeping their data safe.

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