A Medical Device Daily

The Asia-Pacific region’s largest medical device event, the combined 58th China International Equipment Fair (CMEF) and the fifth presentation of International Component Manufacturing & Design (ICMD), will be held this week at the New International Convention & Exposition Center in Chengdu, China.

Some 2,000 exhibiting companies from 19 different countries and regions, and visitors from more than 70 countries are expected to converge at the Wednesday-through-Saturday event, reinforcing its strong international focus, said conference organizer Reed Sinopharm Exhibitions (RSE; Beijing).

RSE is a joint venture between the China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm) and Reed Exhibitions, a producer of medical and pharmaceutical events in China. The latter is a unit of global publishing house Reed Elsevier (London).

Reed Sinopharm said the biannual exhibition “offers a comprehensive business platform to international visitors seeking to build their business in China.” It said the Chinese medical device market is estimated to be worth $3.3 billion in total sales volume and is forecasted to maintain annual growth of 11.7%.

The organizers said the CMEF gathering “promises to showcase the most innovative medical device technologies in China,” and, together with ICMD, “will bring a wide-ranging portfolio of industry products and services to show attendees who are looking for proven solutions that can meet critical business needs.”

Product categories range from imaging, surgical and emergency, diagnostics, critical patient care, electronics, optical, laboratory and clinical devices, to other healthcare products and services for hospital and medical institutions.

“The Chinese medical device industry is becoming increasingly competitive in the area of R&D and manufacturing capabilities,” said Hu Kun Ping, VP of RSE. “As a result, domestic production of high-quality medical equipment and devices are expanding at an unprecedented rate. In recent years we have seen tremendous interest from foreign buyers who come to our event to source industry-leading products and services at competitive prices.”

The event will feature four international pavilions, from the U.S., Germany, South Korea and Japan. Leading international exhibitors include GE Medical, Siemens, Johnson & Johnson, Medtronic, Toshiba, Hitachi, Kodak, Fuji, Draeger and Aditis.

In addition, CMEF/ICMD will present a conference program that RSE described as “cover[ing] key trends, hot-button issues and topical discussions relevant to the industry.”

The 12th Asian Harmonization Working Party meeting will be conducted in conjunction with the CMEF/ICMD congress, to discuss issues and industry commitment to the harmonization of medical device regulatory requirements in the Asia-Pacific region.

Power3 in Mideast distribution accord

Power3 Medical Products (Houston) has signed its first distribution agreement to provide BC-SeraPro, its breast cancer blood serum diagnostic test, in 12 Middle Eastern countries before the end of 2007. The agreement with Financial Advisory House’s (FAH) Medical Equipment Suppliers division, a Bahrain-based medical instrument distribution company, allows for the marketing and distribution of the BC-SeraPro breast cancer diagnostic test in Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Syria, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

Power3 said BC-SeraPro is the first proteomics-based blood serum diagnostic test to be used for the early screening and diagnosis of breast cancer. As part of the agreement, FAH will market and distribute the BC-SeraPro diagnostic test to clinics and physicians in those Middle Eastern countries, with the tests analyzed in Power3’s Houston-based, CLIA-certified proteomic laboratory.

“The agreement with Financial Advisory House is an important milestone in our development and transition from a research and development company to a diagnostic company with commercially viable products,” said Steven Rash, chairman and CEO of Power3.

He added: “We selected the Middle East as our initial market because the healthcare systems in these particular countries are open to providing a test that offers new and innovative technologies for earlier detection of breast cancer. These markets also have a particular need for additional methods of early detection due to their high incidence rates of breast cancer.”

Rash said the company is seeking other distributors for the BC-SeraPro and is in discussions with several international and domestic partners “as we implement our strategic plan to expand our geographical distribution of the test and other diagnostic tests currently in the pipeline.”

Ebrahim Al-Lengawi, CEO and chairman of Financial Advisory House, said, “Our medical division was founded to acquire the latest available technologies in the world to benefit the citizens of Bahrain. Through our network of affiliates in other Middle Eastern countries, we are able to distribute new technologies, like the BC-SeraPro test, in partnership with those affiliates.”

Power3 said it expects to report preliminary results of the product launch during 1Q08 and plans on publishing peer-reviewed articles about BC-SeraPro later in the year.

Two new distributors added by Baxa

Baxa (Englewood, Colorado), a provider of systems for fluid handling and delivery in hospital pharmacies, reported the addition of two new international product distributors.

The company said these agreements — with Magallan Pharma Trading in Colombia and Pentafarma & Co. in the Dominican Republic — will enable it to extend its global reach and expand product promotion in South America and the Caribbean.

“Global markets offer significant potential for growth in Baxa’s key product lines,” said Steve Welch, vice president of new business development. “:These new partnerships expand the visibility of the Baxa brand and give us opportunities for sales growth and market expansion.”

Privately held Baxa has subsidiaries and sales offices in Canada and the UK; direct representation in Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Switzerland; and distribution partners in 35 other countries.