How H&MV Engineering achieved high voltage growth in new markets

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“When you have access to that funding, it gives you comfort, as the alternative seems costly to explore a new region.”

– PJ Flanagan, CEO

Key Takeouts:

  • H&MV had grown steadily from a small electrical sub-contractor to high voltage specialist.
  • The Enterprise Ireland Market Access Grant helped them set up in new regions.
  • With a country by country, market by market approach, the focus is on the quality of the contracts and having the ability to be selective.

Case Study: H&MV Engineering

Headquartered in Limerick, high voltage solutions specialist H&MV Engineering (H&MV) has experienced rapid growth in recent years, breaking new ground in the UK and Norwegian markets. Enterprise Ireland has provided valued assistance to H&MV throughout this busy growth period.

“We specialise in grid connections”, says CEO PJ Flanagan. “If a high-energy user customer wants to connect to the power grid, they need H&MV to build a sub-station and connect them. We also work for distribution network operators (DNOs) and transmission network operators (TNOs). If a company is developing a data centre, the first thing they need is a grid connection. That’s what we do.”

The firm was founded in 1997 and Flanagan joined the following year as its first apprentice electrician. Growing steadily since 1997, the company has transitioned from a small electrical sub-contractor to a high voltage specialist, operating as principal contractor on major projects.

In 2015, Flanagan and his business partner John Stokes led a management buyout (MBO) of the company with the support of MML Growth Capital Partners. “MML is backed by Enterprise Ireland and AIB”, says Flanagan. “That was our first introduction to Enterprise Ireland. We had turnover of €7 million and 70 employees at that time. We now have 155 employees, turnover has grown to €33 million, and we have just announced our planned expansion. This expansion will result in H&MV doubling our workforce here in Limerick over the next five years. In the last two years, our design team alone has grown from 1 to 14.”

As part of the MBO process, Flanagan and the management team set out a long-term vision of how they wanted the company to develop. “Our ambition was to grow the company in the UK and across Europe”, he says.

“Enterprise Ireland’s market research supports have been very beneficial for us. When you have access to that funding, it gives you comfort, as the alternative seems costly to explore a new region. We have been very successful in the UK to date and anticipate UK turnover to reach £4 million in 2018.”

H&MV has also focused on the Norwegian market as part of its strategic growth. “Business in Norway is progressing for us now and we secured a €6 million contract outside Oslo last year. We have applied for another grant to assist in researching and validating the Dutch market.”

This country by country, market by market approach is a deliberate strategy. “We are looking for steady organic growth”, Flanagan points out. “We don’t chase numbers. We chase quality in terms of the contracts we work on and the clients we work for. We are very selective and we don’t take on just anybody. Our clients tend to be very large companies in industries like pharmaceuticals, utility provision, data centres and renewable energy. Many of our customers are state-owned.”

Growth ambitions are not limited to Europe. “I am travelling to South Africa in the near future to look at that market. We might explore the Far East as well. Advance research to ensure market viability is imperative.”

Enterprise Ireland support has played a key role in the company’s growth in recent years. “It has been massively important to us”, says Flanagan.

“Enterprise Ireland helped us make initial contact and build relationships in new regions. They are very helpful in terms of organising meetings and introductions. We have been able to use Enterprise Ireland’s overseas office network as well. Support from the organisation gives you great confidence. It can be lonely at first when you’re trying to break into a new market, so it’s great to have someone on the ground to give you support and help. I would encourage other companies to approach Enterprise Ireland if they have ambitions to expand into a new region.”

How Aerogen’s ‘Born Global’ Mindset Drove Export Success

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“The more resources you apply — particularly on the ground — the more traction and sales you achieve. We found that you can’t dabble in a market; you have to go all-in.”

John Power, CEO, Aerogen

Key Takeouts:

  • ‘Born Global’ mindset drove export success.
  • Strong distributors plus people on the ground accelerated market penetration.
  • Each market entry enabled locally by Enterprise Ireland.

Case Study: Aerogen

CEO of Aerogen John Power recognised long before he established the company in Galway in 1997 that he would have to make sure it developed a unique solution that could be sold globally — distinct from something designed specifically for Europe or the US.

The result was an aerosol drug delivery system that reduces the length of time a patient needs to be on a ventilator, meaning they recover faster and have a shorter stay in hospital. Its proprietary vibrating mesh technology turns liquid medication into a fine particle mist, gently and effectively delivering drugs to the lungs of critically ill patients.

Aerogen is now synonymous with the effective treatment of respiratory illness among patient groups of all ages, playing a critical role in emergency departments and intensive care units in over 75 countries worldwide.

“Medtech companies by nature are ‘born global’. I knew there was no chance of setting up and sustaining a business developing original medical equipment just for sale in Ireland and the UK,” says Power.

“All of our products are heavily regulated and any new iteration has to get both European and US approvals, so we have always brought those markets along in parallel since early 2000. A lot of our partners, such as GE Healthcare and Medtronic, want products that sell internationally and are regulated internationally.”

The US is Aerogen’s leading market — its aerosol drug delivery system is now being used in the intensive care units of 60% of the top 200 hospitals in the US. Europe, including the UK and Ireland, is its second biggest market accounting for around 30% of sales, followed by Asia and the Middle East.

Aerogen’s Partnership with Enterprise Ireland:

  • Partnership began with feasibility funding in 1997.
  • Accesses Enterprise Ireland’s network in every market it enters.
  • R&D supports have enabled risky and costly innovation.
  • Shares Enterprise Ireland presence at important trade events.

To see how Enterprise Ireland has enabled Aerogen’s success, click here.

Working with distributors

While Aerogen currently sells through distributors in all of its markets, its entry strategy in many cases was to partner with large healthcare multinationals which sold its solution alongside major pieces of capital equipment. Power’s connections in the industry helped in this regard as he had worked in multinationals previously.

Aerogen’s annual revenues have been growing by 25-30% over the past number of years, reaching €50m in 2016. Of its total workforce of 130, there are now 20 people based full-time in the US, four in Germany, three in France and two in the UK. It added 35 people to its headcount in 2016 and will do the same this year.

 

“One of the things we have learned is making money in any given market is all down to putting more resources into it – both commercial and clinical. The more resources you apply, particularly on the ground, the more traction and sales you achieve. We found that you can’t dabble in a market, you have to go all-in” says Power.

Selecting the right distributor in each market for Aerogen’s products has been crucially important and the expertise and experience that exists within the workforce has played a key role in this regard.

“I have a group of guys involved in our export markets who have worked all their lives in export sales for big multinational companies and specialise in different regions,” says Power. “They know who the good distributors are. Most of the time distribution is done on the basis of personal experience or a strong recommendation from someone you know.

 

Germany and France – challenges overcome

While Ireland is a huge exporter of medtech products, a large percentage of this is by US multinationals based here. This is in contrast to Germany and France which have large indigenous medtech sectors.

“Germany and France dwarf Ireland when it comes to their indigenous medtech sectors. Both are quite protectionist in many ways and want to support their own industries in their own countries,” says Power.

“For that reason, our products have to be better than those manufactured by German and French companies to make sure they will sell. Germans like to develop their own innovative products and France has a long engineering and technology track record. So any technology you’re trying to sell has to be substantially better than what they have developed themselves if it is to interest them.”

In order to sell into Europe, a medtech product must achieve the CE Marking certification. After that, it must be approved by the individual authorities in each country. How easy or difficult this is depends on the structure of the health system.

“For example, in France, there is a very strong public health system which can mean a reticence to change. You have to ensure products are properly coded by the relevant health authorities before you can sell into that market,” says Power. “Normally there is more of a mix of private and public health systems – sometimes it is easier to get in the door of private hospitals as there is less bureaucracy.”

A further challenge in France and Germany has been that healthcare providers demand proof of the economic, as well as the clinical, benefits of any new medical technology. Aerogen has concentrated a lot on this area in the past 18 months, investing in clinical studies to prove the benefits of its technology clinically and how it can reduce the cost of care – for example by reducing admissions from accident and emergency departments.

“Everybody prefers data from their own market. It is an expensive game, but if we want scalability in terms of our product, we have got to be prepared to invest in this area,” notes Power.

Top Tips for Exporting to Europe:

  • Develop a superior, differentiated solution — not a ‘me too’.
  • Start with a narrow market focus and service that well.
  • Work long and hard to identify the right distributor.
  • Nothing beats your own people on the ground, driving your distributor.

For more details, click here .

fintech

Nordic Countries Offer Opportunities as Irish Fintech Grows

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As a source of growth in both the Nordic and Irish markets, the fintech sector has become an important focus for innovation initiatives. Over the past five years, Stockholm attracted 18% of all European fintech investment, second only to London. When the organisers of Money 2020, the world’s largest financial services event, came to Europe, they chose to locate in Copenhagen.

Significant fintech growth predicted in Ireland

Ireland has become a fintech powerhouse with potential to grow significantly in the next decade. The government’s IFS2020 strategy aims to showcase fintech providers and increase market awareness of the domestic financial services offering. At the end of 2015, Enterprise Ireland counted 8,800 people specifically employed in fintech, up 40% from 2008, with over 100 client companies active in the area.

Showcasing fintech innovation

To capitalise on these growth prospects, Enterprise Ireland expanded the team that supports fintech and launched a sector-specific fintech Competitive Start Fund. The agency fosters fintech innovation through world-class acceleration programs organised with partners including the NDRC and Accenture. The Fintech Innovation Showcase held in Dublin gave ambitious Irish businesses, including Vistatec, Kyckr and Solgari, the chance to explore partnership opportunities with top players from Denmark including Nordea Bank, Danske Bank, Saxo Bank, Nets, SDC, Financial Services Union, Copenhagen Fintech, BEC and Festina Finance. Visitors learned about the capabilities of Enterprise Ireland clients in rapidly developing areas like artificial intelligence, data analytics, payments, cybersecurity, and regulation and compliance.

The opportunity for Irish companies in the Nordics is significant, an attendee explains, “We’re primarily interested in solutions that we can bring to our 10 million retail customers and 700,000 SME and corporate customers. We would like to partner with Irish start-ups that have banks as customers. Potential areas include open banking, solutions leveraging opportunities created by PSD2, like financial aggregators, and AI and machine learning. Inputs on the fintech initiatives of tech giants residing in Ireland are also of interest.”

 

Researching new markets

One challenge clients experience when expanding overseas is to understand the market’s business culture and customers. Attending events like the Fintech Showcase gives Irish companies an opportunity to learn about practical aspects of doing business in the target market. In the Nordics itself, the Copenhagen Fintech hub connects leading companies in the space in Denmark and can be a great starting point for Irish companies keen to see what Denmark can offer.

Before committing to expansion, Irish companies should be aware that the Nordic market is extremely advanced and has many indigenous global players, making competition fierce. Unless your company has a unique solution, it can be difficult to succeed. Fintech businesses in the region want a reliable, trusted, and secure supplier. An attendee describes their ideal Irish partner, “We like to collaborate with global fintech accelerators that provide a consistent pipeline, are highly verticalised within payments and adjacent services, and agnostic to geography. We are particularly interested in connecting with fintechs with IoT-knowledge, especially Internet of Payments. Value-added services connected to retail are of major interest if the technology can be exported to the Nordic context, for example start-ups that collaborate with a merchant to demonstrate a practical solution in the Irish market that can be easily exported overseas.”

In addition to attending events like the Fintech Innovation Showcase, there are a range of supports you can access to realise plans in the Nordics. Enterprise Ireland offers R&D, Innovation and Competitiveness funding to help companies identify and fill knowledge gaps. Local offices can connect you to specialist Market Advisors in the region. Taking time to learn about the realities of the Nordic market will give your plans for growth every chance of success.

How research helped Ventac to identify opportunities that drive innovation

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“For our customers innovation is crucial. They win contracts based on performance and fuel efficiency, but noise is also a key criteria. That is where we come in.”

– Darren Fortune, Managing Director, Ventac

Key Takeouts:

  • Constant innovation in-line with legislation drove export success.
  • Enterprise Ireland’s RD&I funding enabled new product development.
  • Specialist test laboratory and manufacturing facility a major draw for European clients.

Case Study: Ventac

Ventac, a recipient of Enterprise Ireland’s RD&I funding, was named overall winner and Manufacturer of the Year at the National Small Business Awards 2017. The company supplies noise control solutions for commercial vehicles such as bus and coach, agricultural and industrial machinery and specialist machinery including truck-mounted refrigeration units and forklifts.

Ventac has overseas offices in the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Turkey, and plans to open an office in the United States next spring. 70 percent of Ventac’s products are exported, mostly to original equipment manufacturers in Europe. Customers include Combilift, Terex (construction vehicles), Hyster-Yale (forklifts), Zetor Tractors and Alexander Dennis (bus manufacturer). “In Europe our market is driven by noise legislation,” says Fortune, “but new legislation is coming out in the US and our existing European customers see North America as a target market.”

“For our customers innovation is crucial,” he adds, “they win contracts based on performance and fuel efficiency, but noise is also a key criteria. That is where we come in. ”Ventac needs to generate new materials and products to reduce noise in vehicles, adapting the solutions for specific noise frequencies. For example, it redesigned the wheel arch insulation in tractors from a Czech manufacturer and reduced noise by 50 percent inside the vehicle. While a traditional solution might be to fit a quilt to the wheel arch, Ventac is now looking to go one step further: “We are asking why the wheel arch can’t be better acoustically. We are developing that type of product.”

Ventac sees a big future for electric vehicles, not just cars but also buses, coaches, forklifts and other commercial vehicles. Electric motors generate higher frequency noises than those of internal combustion engines and therefore require new materials. “You need different materials to treat that noise source,” Fortune explains, and Ventac has put its expertise on the case.

In 2012, the company received RD&I funding from Enterprise Ireland to develop a brush cover for road-sweeping vehicles with reduced noise, and a new floor for buses and trucks that sandwiched acoustic polymer material between thin layers of plywood. This floor was 40 percent lighter than current bus floors; for ease of manufacturing, Ventac is working to substitute the wood component.

“We are now looking to make a composite plastic that would reduce noise for passengers and reduce vehicle weight,” Fortune explains. Due to the product’s potential, Enterprise Ireland supported an Innovation Partnership between Ventac and the Irish Centre for Composites Research (iComp) at the University of Limerick.

“R&D funding has been fundamental in helping Ventac develop new products for different customers in European markets,” says Fortune. “This focus on R&D and innovation at Ventac has enhanced our reputation in our target market as an innovative solution provider.”

Ventac boasts a special acoustic laboratory where it can test mock-ups of materials and parts, and create tailored solutions. Customers can hear and measure the resulting noise reduction at their own sites or at the Blessington testing facility.

“It is a real show stopper,” says Fortune, “when we bring clients from Europe and show them our manufacturing facility and then our acoustic laboratory.” Ventac has grown from around 30 employees in 2013 to 50 today. Exports for 2017 were just under €3 million. Next spring, Ventac will open an office in South Carolina to take advantage of an automotive cluster around South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia.

Asavie

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“Enterprise Ireland have enabled us to take bigger bets and scale the company faster. And we’re really seeing the benefit of that today.”

Keith O’Byrne – Director

Who

Asavie are a technology company developing and scaling Internet of Things applications from prototype to production.

How

Funding from Enterprise Ireland has allowed Asavie to hire a team of developers instead of hiring one by one.

Result

Working with Enterprise Ireland allowed Asavie to accelerate their work, scaling far quicker than they would have without help.

See How We Helped Asavie

Dawn Farms Meeting Customer Expectations Through Innovation

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“We have had a long-standing positive and proactive relationship with Enterprise Ireland and currently avail of its R&D support programme”

– John McGrath, Head of Business Development

 

Case Study: Dawn Farms

Established in 1985, Dawn Farms is a family-owned company and the largest specialist supplier of cooked and fermented meat protein ingredients outside of the USA. The company currently supplies world-leading food brands across more than 40 markets, including the UK, the wider EU, the Middle East and Africa, offering a “one-stop shop” to customers in the pizza, sandwich, snacking and ready meal categories.

Named Irish Food and Drink Exporter of the Year in 2016, the company employs over 1,000 staff based in state-of-the-art facilities in Naas, County Kildare, and Northampton, England.

According to Head of Business Development John McGrath, a holistic relationship-based service that puts the customer’s brand first – with product, process and service innovation playing a central role in its total value proposition – is at the heart of the company’s success.

“We have identified a number of key trends, based on consumer insights, that drive our product development pipeline”, he explains. These include the “quest for health and wellness” and “sustainable lives”.

In line with these trends, all Dawn Farms products are free from artificial colours, hydrogenated fats and MSG, while also meeting the latest standards on salt.

The company’s new Streetfood Collection, born out of its extensive investment in consumer insights, combines a bespoke cook and sear process to produce a range of Mexican, American and Korean-inspired street food cooked meat products to allow their customers meet growing demand in the hand-held snack and food to go markets across Europe. Cooked “low and slow”, this new range brings all the flavours of street food alive and comes in vacuum-sealed pouches for better and more consistent recipe and flavour delivery in store.

“Today’s consumers are seeking out authentic and better tasting food experiences”, says McGrath. “The Street Food Collection delivers on that need for Dawn Farms customers.”

 

     

    The company’s Texan BBQ Beef Burnt Ends sandwich filling is another example of this consumer-led innovation in action. “Consumers today are becoming more discerning about barbecue food and this is evident in the different types of regional barbecue sauces offered in burger chains as well as the broad choice of restaurants seeking to deliver authentic American barbecue experience and tastes”, McGrath points out. “It also taps into the ‘back to basics’ food trend – a return to primeval cooking methods such as grilling, barbecuing and fermentation. The burnt ends’ concept also fits the sensorial trend towards charring, blackened and burnt textures in ingredients from meat to ice cream.”

    Similarly, the company’s Italian-Style Porchetta product was inspired by traditional Italian street food. “The rationale behind this ingredient is to give food-to-go consumers an authentic Italian food experience. This fits in with the Borrowed Nostalgia food trend, where people are looking for traditional food experiences from other countries. Porchetta is a traditional Italian roasted pork delicacy, typically sold from a cart or a truck, sliced to order and served in a sandwich as a quick treat at the market or at a fair.”

    “We have had a long-standing positive and proactive relationship with Enterprise Ireland and currently avail of its R&D support programme”, he adds. “This has allowed us develop a range of product and process improvements across the business that underpin our commercial strategy and foster new growth opportunities in a very demanding marketplace.”

    Game-changing brewing technology boosts brand value for Marco Beverage Systems

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    “People sometimes see an R&D grant as something to get a product to market, but a reputation for innovation also increases your brand value and drives sales all by itself.”

    – Paul Stack, Operations Director, Marco Beverage Systems.

    Key Takeouts:

    • Enterprise Ireland’s funding helped drive culture of innovation.
    • Leading-edge technology transformed brand awareness and opened new markets. R&D for one product generated platform technologies that could be used in others.

    Case Study: Marco Beverage Systems

    “It’s important as an SME to be able to afford to continually innovate,” says Paul Stack. “In our business, we generally get about a seven-to-ten-year product lifetime, so innovation is key to replacing and renewing products.” Stack is Operations Director at Marco Beverage Systems, a hot water delivery systems company, headquartered in Dublin.

    The company, which provides systems for coffee and tea brewing in the food and beverage industry, is a recipient of Enterprise Ireland’s RD&I funding.

    Its range of products includes water boilers and coffee brewers. Marco has manufacturing plants in Dublin and China, and distribution offices in America, Europe, the Middle East and China, giving the company global reach.

    80 per cent of Marco’s products are exported: an increase from 68 per cent only three years ago. It has just under 100 employees globally, with approximately 60 based in Ireland, and its products can be seen in significant coffee, tea and catering locations, including familiar names like Starbucks, Bewley’s and Costa Coffee.

    The company’s success is fuelled by its emphasis on innovation. This focus, and a desire to expand it, led the company to apply for RD&I funding from Enterprise Ireland back in 2004. “The main considerations for our design team are energy efficiency, beverage excellence and design excellence, incorporating user experience and aesthetics,” says Stack.

    “Energy efficiency has been a major success for us in terms of cutting-edge design. Over 50 per cent of the energy footprint associated with a cup of tea or coffee is in brewing it,” Stack points out. “Our R&D department has significantly reduced the amount of energy our products use, and one of our products is 70 per cent more energy-efficient than anything else on the market globally, which is a great selling point.”

    One example of a product that has benefitted from the Marco Beverage Systems R&D program is the Uber Boiler, launched in 2009. This one-cup coffee brewing station has replaced more traditional bulk coffee systems in many cafés and restaurants. It allows baristas to have more control over a recipe and brings them closer to the front of the shop to interact with customers.

    The Uber Boiler and similar systems are now a common sight in coffee shops, but when the company first developed this product it had a big effect on the industry. “The product completely changed how our brand was seen in the marketplace as it was so innovative. It opened doors for us, especially in new regions like America. People came to us because of the popularity of the technology,” says Stack.

    The company has also found that R&D for one product can generate platform technologies that can be used in others. A separate research project for a different product resulted in innovations that contributed to an automatic version of the Uber Boiler, the SP9, demonstrating the types of cross-pollination that an R&D program can produce.

    “People sometimes see an R&D grant as something to get a product to market, but a reputation for innovation also increases your brand value and drives sales all by itself. R&D drives a whole culture of innovation in your business, which keeps you relevant and sets you apart from competitors,” explains Stack. “I wouldn’t just suggest that other Irish SMEs conduct R&D – I consider it absolutely critical. Enterprise Ireland’s funding can really drive this forward.”

    A view from the Ireland-Estonia tech bridge

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    If your company is interested in expanding to eastern Europe, there are good reasons to consider Estonia. Business people in Ireland and Estonia share a positive attitude, making both tech scenes fun and collaborative. At home, Techireland gathers the community. Estonia has a similar catch-up with the cheeky hashtag #estonianmafia. While Irish companies are particularly strong at sales and networking, Estonians rank very well in mathematical and engineering skills.

    Enterprise Ireland organised the Ireland-Estonia Tech Bridge event to encourage collaboration between businesses in both markets. Estonian companies, including Cybernetica, Paytailor, Estate Guru and Guardtime, travelled to the two-day event in Dublin to explore joint opportunities in fintech, e-government and cybersecurity – areas of strength in both economies.

    Tech Bridge arrived at an opportune moment, with business between Ireland and Estonia already on the rise. In 2016, Irish CSO data showed a 65% increase in exports to Estonia, when compared with 2015. Enterprise Ireland clients generated over €8 million of exports to Estonia in 2016, with food representing 48%. It’s encouraging that companies like MalwareBytes, Arvato Financial Services and TransferWise are already active in both countries. It’s also great to see the first example of a UK/Estonian startup, Travatar, establishing its head office in Galway. One of the goals of the Tech Bridge visit was to encourage more Estonian companies to consider Ireland as a leading alternative to other European locations.

    The economic profile of Ireland and Estonia is also similar in ways. Both are small markets, making it essential for home-grown businesses to be export-focused. Tech Bridge is one example of Enterprise Ireland’s Eurozone strategy in action. The plan offers clients multiple supports with the goal of increasing exports to the Eurozone by 50%, to €6.15bn, by 2020. Many companies in eastern Europe look at the supports clients receive from Enterprise Ireland with envy. From both a Polish and Estonian perspective, it is very impressive that a government agency is so active as an investor and that its processes are so efficient and client-friendly. Companies like Combilift and Novareus are examples of companies Enterprise Ireland successfully supported to grow internationally, particularly in EMEA. Combined with a record of attracting overseas start-ups and entrepreneurs, Ireland is in the top league in the competition for tech talent. I see a hunger to emulate that success in many eastern European countries.

    There are also great reasons for Irish companies to look eastwards to Estonia. Most obviously, there are opportunities in cybersecurity – NATO has its Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in Tallin. Estonia’s state of the art eGovernment infrastructure is a clear example of strategic, long-term planning combined with tech-savvy spirit and a capable talent pool. Estonia also makes a great base for Baltic and Nordic export activity in general. At Tech Bridge, we connected clients with Estonian counterparts and pointed them towards business opportunities in the Baltics. The outcome of those collaborations will be seen in time.

    If your business has an eye on Estonia, there are some practical challenges you should consider. Think about how key staff will travel, for example. Right now, there are only two direct flights weekly between Tallin and Dublin. That’s not very convenient for business travellers. While details like this might seem minor, it’s crucial to make sure they’re built into export plans. There is help available for these challenges big and small. The Irish Estonian Business Network will support any company thinking of moving from one market to the other. Together with Enterprise Ireland and The Embassy of Ireland, IEBN is forging new business relationships at a local level. Overcome the hurdles, and these supports could help your business to thrive in the east.

    Sweet seduction of Switzerland should whet Irish firms’ appetites

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    Jane Greene, Enterprise Ireland Market Adviser for Germany, Switzerland and Austria explains the allure of Switzerland for Irish companies looking to export.

    Switzerland is on top of the world – almost literally, because from the dizzy vantage point of those Toblerone-shaped peaks in the Alps – it is number one for competitiveness, according to the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report 2016/17.

    Retaining this position for the eighth year in a row, despite the Swiss franc remaining sky-high since it was unpegged from the euro in January 2014, is a testament to the sophistication of its economy.

    Innovation is key to this. Switzerland was ranked first in the world for innovation by the European Union in 2016. The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich and the University of Zurich are listed 20th and 54th respectively on the 2015 Academic Ranking of World Universities, while the International Institute for Management Development in Lausanne is among the world’s top business schools.

    History and geography play a part too. For centuries, the Swiss have controlled access through one of Europe’s major physical frontiers – the Alps. Swiss engineering ingenuity has been honed by the need to tunnel and build a network of cable cars, rail tracks and motorway against gravity-defying odds, giving them one of highest road and rail densities in Europe.

    Their precision engineering prowess in watchmaking has made them leaders not only in luxury goods, but also in the medical-devices industry. And, of course, those Heidi-inspiring landscapes give us Swiss chocolate, Emmental, Gruyère and an international dairy and food ingredients industry. Switzerland is an attractive market for Irish companies because it is strong in areas where Ireland also has world-leading capability and expertise. This includes pharmaceutical manufacturing, medical devices, dairy and food ingredients, financial services and engineering.

    Along with the Brown Swiss cattle breed, chocolate and the Alps, neutrality is badge of Swiss identity – a shared value in a country with a historic Catholic-Protestant divide. It also has four official languages – German, Italian, French and Romansh, each with its attendant culture leanings – and 26 cantons, with the power to determine local regulations and taxes. Neutrality has made Switzerland a unique player in international relations and a major base for international agencies like the United Nations and the Red Cross, as well as sports governing bodies, including the International Olympic Committee and Fifa.

    It has also contributed to Switzerland’s historic standing as a safe financial haven. Switzerland’s financial sector, including its banks and insurance industry, remains in rude health, providing some 6pc of all employment in Switzerland and accounting for a tenth of value-added.

    Alongside major financial players – UBS, Credit Suisse and Zurich FS – Switzerland is home to global giants in pharmaceuticals and the food industry; for instance, Nestlé, Novartis and Roche. With 15 home-grown Fortune 500 players, it punches above its weight compared to larger neighbours, Germany, France and Italy. Now is a good time for Irish business to consider this market. Swiss companies are feeling the pain of the strong franc and are looking to retain competitiveness by sourcing outside the country.

    Currently, Switzerland is the 11th-largest export market for Enterprise Ireland clients. Total sales rose from €295m in 2014 to €306m in 2015. This is higher than larger markets such as Canada, Australia and South Africa.

    Switzerland’s appeal is manifold. A prosperous market, political stability, a competitive tax rate and good rankings for ease of doing business. Being outside the European Union presents few difficulties for Irish exporters because it is a member of the single market.

    For sure, it’s an expensive place. But Swiss companies have massive purchasing power and a desire to do business externally. With direct flights to Basel, Zurich and Geneva taking just two hours, and plenty to occupy business travellers’ down time, Irish supplier could find Switzerland a sweet seduction.

    To learn more about Enterprise Ireland supports and for further information on exporting click here

    Two Irish Medtech Companies with Global Ambition partner with Northwell Healthcare

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    The largest healthcare provider in New York State, Northwell Health, signed and sealed two new partnerships with Irish Medtech businesses. Northwell Health is using solutions from Irish companies to enhance customer experience and improve efficiency and productivity, thanks to a partnership signed with Enterprise Ireland.

    Northwell Health has 22 hospitals and 600 outpatient facilities, and cares for more than 1.8 million people a year in the New York area, and beyond. President and Chief Executive Michael Dowling is highly focused on continuous innovation in what he views as a fast-changing and increasingly more competitive market.

    Northwell Health reviewed over 50 Irish companies and agreed deals with two – Technopath Clinical Diagnostics and Salaso Health Solutions.

    Technopath developed a first-of-its-kind, consolidated immunochemistry testing product. Consolidation is attractive to companies like Northwell Health because it enables clinical labs to significantly reduce handling requirements, reclaim storage and minimise waste, leading to a more efficient quality control process.

    “The solutions Technopath has developed have dramatically helped us to improve the quality, efficiency and cost-effectiveness of our laboratory quality control processes.”

    Northwell Health has signed a 50-50 joint venture agreement with Technopath, with a view to promoting the Irish companies’ offering to labs all over the US. It owns one of the biggest labs run by a health system in the US – performing more than 30 million tests and analysing 200,000 surgical specimens a year.

    Salaso Health Solutions is based in Kerry. The company has developed a platform which allows patients to use their smartphones or tablets to access and interact with high-definition video exercises prescribed by their clinicians.

    The deal expands on the company’s existing contract with Northwell Health to provide online care management services to stroke survivors and patients with movement disorders and other neurological conditions.

    Under the agreement, Northwell Health will invest in Salaso Health Solutions to enable the company to further develop the solution, expanding the scope of online rehabilitation care to patients with cancer, COPD [Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder] and other medical conditions.

    “We are always interested in solutions that can improve clinical outcomes. Salaso’s app can improve what a patient does at home after they have been treated by a doctor so they don’t have to come back to the hospital and are more knowledgeable,” said Dowling.

    Until two years ago, Dowling didn’t appreciate the scale of the entrepreneurial developments that have been built in Ireland. “I spent a couple of days going around to a lot of companies with Enterprise Ireland and I was completely blown away,” he says. “The capabilities and competencies that exist in Ireland, especially in areas such as Medtech, are phenomenal. In my view, this is down to the education system and the innovative spirit, personality and knowledge of the people.”

    One of the areas where Irish Medtech companies are particularly strong in is digital health, according to Dowling.

    “Everything is becoming more democratised because of the access consumers have to mobile phones. We do business with other countries, but there is nothing as expansive as what Irish companies are doing in the whole digital health and customer experience space. The consumer is the biggest change agent in healthcare. We have to deliver what the consumer wants. The innovations coming out of Ireland fit right in with that.”

     

    Learn more about the Irish companies adding value to the North American health systems and key information on doing business in the USA.

     

     

    3 Steps to Successfully Launching a Medical Device in Europe

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    When launching a medtech device in any new market, there are typically challenges to overcome. However, the European Union is widely accepted as being an easier market to overcome compared to the USA. Essentially, there are three steps to follow to ensure it is a more efficient process:

    • Authorisation

    • Reimbursement

    • Route to Market

     

    Authorisation – A Key Factor to Medtech Green Light

    In Europe, every marketed medical device must carry a Conformité Européenne (CE) mark indicating that it conforms to relevant directives set forth in the EC Medical Device Directives. “Once your product is classified as a medical device and gets CE accreditation, it can be commercialised in any EU market,” advises Jean Charles Moczarski at Enterprise Ireland’s Paris office.

    Non-implantable medical devices are considered low risk meaning manufacturers themselves can certify compliance and apply a CE mark. Higher risk devices must undergo an external review and may require clinical and/or non-clinical evidence to support approval.

    The application can be filed in any member state and is reviewed by a ‘notified body’ authorised by that state’s competent authority. Currently, there are over 70 notified bodies operating in the EU; typically, these are for-profit, private companies.

    The European regulatory process is an easier place to start, agrees Atlantic Therapeutics CEO Steve Atkinson. Atlantic Therapeutics has offices in Galway, London, and Salem in Germany. It attracted €15 million in venture capital to expand market reach for Innovo, a non-intrusive device to treat urinary incontinence by strengthening pelvic floor muscles. Moreover, European Union authorisation has helped open doors for Innovo in the Middle East due to the similarities between the EU and local regulatory regimes.

    In contrast, medical device approval is overseen by a single authority in the USA – the Federal Drugs Administration (FDA).

    In a comparison of the two systems published in 2016, Gail Van Norman noted, “Before approval of a medical device in the United States, a device must not only be shown to be safe, but efficacious. Medical devices approved in Europe need only to demonstrate safety and performance – they are not required to demonstrate clinical efficacy.”

    Cork-based start-up PMD Solutions has developed RespiraSense as a continuous and accurate, discrete sensor that measures the mechanics of respiration in general ward patients who are at risk of adverse events until discharged from hospitals. The device has been trialled in hospitals in Ireland, Europe and Asia.

    Having selected Europe as an initial target market, CEO Myles Murray says,

    “It’s all about resources. SMEs need to be strategic about the territory they enter. The European CE pathway, although still rigorous, can be easier.”

    If European industry and patient lobby groups have their way, this advantage will remain. However, it could be a case of watch this space. Proposed amendments to Europe’s medical device regulations, which would bring it closer to the US system, include involving the European Medical Agency in device regulation, tightening controls over notified bodies and requiring more rigorous clinical evidence.

    Reimbursement: What you need to know to help green light your Medtech Device

    Step two involves getting on the ‘approved list’ for reimbursement, so that customers – whether a hospital or patient – will be reimbursed by the relevant health insurer, if they purchase the device.

    SMEs often make the mistake of assuming the data they have used to file for the CE mark will be sufficient to include them on a territory’s qualified list of products and services for reimbursement. In the era of value-based healthcare, companies need to prove that their product will deliver clinical, economic and, for patients, quality-of-life benefits.

    Additionally, success in one European market does not offer a free pass to the next one. Companies should understand the various reimbursement schemes operating in intended target markets and consider what additional evidence might be required when setting up a clinical study. Specifically, they should analyse existing reimbursement arrangements for their product type or alternatively, work on getting a new procedural coding.

    The Haute Autorité de Santé assesses whether a product should be made eligible for reimbursement by France’s national health insurance, based on clinical trial evidence and added clinical value. If the benefits are determined to be sufficient, the medical device is registered on a list qualifying it for reimbursement. The manufacturer then negotiates a reimbursement with the public pricing committee, or CEPS as it’s known, based on the clinical value and how it compares to existing products or therapies.

    Atlantic Therapeutics found the French market relatively easy to navigate since a product code already existed for devices of Innovo’s type, allowing for reimbursement for homecare use. If Innovo is prescribed by a French doctor, the patient can simply call into a pharmacy with the reimbursement code to collect it.

    The French medical device market is the second largest in Western Europe and the fifth largest in the world. Its formidable healthcare system has one of the highest spends in Europe representing 11.6% of GDP. Public health chalks up 78% of the total spend and the country is in the midst of a hospital investment programme. In Germany, healthcare expenditure represents around 11% GDP.

    “The German healthcare market is unique because 90% of it is public, dominated by statutory health insurance,” says Marco Kalms, CEO of Palms & Partner, a consultancy firm based in Berlin.

    Kalms says entry into the hospital (inpatient) side of the market is easy, and even off-label use of devices is permitted. On the ambulatory (outpatient) side, everything is forbidden unless approved. The Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) ratifies new procedures for coverage by the statutory health insurers.

    “For the ambulatory market, you need to approach the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA), the highest decision-making body, to see if there is potential. They assess the clinical evidence and decide on how much to pay for it,” he explains.

    “Once you have a CE mark, you can sell into the hospital market using an existing code or apply for a new code to one of the healthcare technology assessment bodies of the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG),” Kalms explains.

    Billing is based on the German Diagnosis Related Groups (G-DRG). The compensation amount is based on data continuously gathered from German clinics. On the hospital side, the InEK Institute determines price.

    “The German public healthcare market is running a surplus, something in the order of €28 billion to €30 billion, which is very different from the UK, the US, or France,” says Kalms.

    “There is a reason for that. They are always looking for opportunities to save money, so with a reasonable price, a product can do well.”

    “A misconception we see with a lot of clients is that having economic data will get you into the German market. The first data the health assessment technology bodies look at is clinical evidence, patient benefits and if there are proven sophisticated clinical studies.”

    “A common mistake is for companies to put their workload into getting FDA and CE approval. Once they have it, they say now for reimbursement. They should have already started on this.”

    Atlantic Therapeutics’ Steve Atkinson agrees and explains, “The reimbursement system in Germany depends on a network of insurers. Which insurer you are with determines how much you will get reimbursed. As a seller, you need to make sure your product is covered by each insurer, and you should get that done ahead of your launch in Germany. Otherwise, you are not going to get paid. Culturally, Germans are not used to paying for healthcare out of their own pockets.”

    Route to Market: Medtech to Market

    Having surmounted two major obstacles, companies have to address the final issue that faces almost any exporter – route to market.

    Small medtech companies are usually best advised to sign up distributors. Additionally, they also need to be aware of the role of group purchasing organisations or GPOs. These are entities intended to help healthcare providers realise savings and efficiencies by aggregating purchasing volume and using that to negotiate discounts with manufacturers and distributors.

    In France’s public hospital system, for example, the Parisian Hospital Board is a central buying group, comprising 37 hospitals organised into 12 hospital groups with 23,000 treatment beds. Its annual budget is around €7 billion.

    In Germany, the leading group purchasing organisation is Prospitalia, with over 700 medical institutions and 135,000 hospital beds; 350 contracted suppliers; 500,000 listed items; and over €1 billion in purchasing volume.

    Internationally, the dominance of GPOs has been blamed for narrowing channels to market to the extent that developing an effective medtech product is, in itself, not enough for a company to reach its ultimate customer.

    “Public buying groups are large, powerful players when it comes to negotiating procurement contracts. This can be a hindrance for smaller companies,” says Moczarski.

    Therefore, Irish companies must also work hard to create market pull, targeting influential surgeons, clinicians and patient groups to champion their products.

    Medtech Innovation in Full Health at Med in Ireland

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    Deirdre Glenn, Manager of the Lifesciences Sector at Enterprise Ireland, discusses key trends emerging from this year’s Med in Ireland event.

    Pierre Chauvineau, Vice President at Boston Scientific, described Ireland as “a small country with a strong economy, where collaboration and values matter”. As a number of the event’s other speakers noted, the latest research shows that Ireland’s medical technologies sector is in full health.

    Enjoying exponential growth from 50 to 350 companies, Ireland has emerged as one of the world’s top five medical technology hubs over the last 20 years. 13 of the top 15 global medtech companies have bases in Ireland, showing that the country has become internationally recognised as a preferred location for the development and manufacture of high-tech medical products. The sector now counts over 350 medical technology companies, of which 152 are indigenous and generate over €600 million in sales and €400 million in exports, employing more than 6,500 people.

    The figures for exporters based in Ireland look just as strong. With significant growth year on year since 2012, Ireland is the second largest exporter of high-tech medical products in the EU. The objective of Med in Ireland is to support further growth by enabling companies based in Ireland to build partnerships with buyers from 42 countries that attend. A number of announcements illustrated the potential of these initiatives.

    Meditec Medical announced that it successfully tendered for a contract with the international Boston Children’s Hospital to manufacture and supply Mediflex pressure relief mattresses to its entire hospital. Irish technology company Kastus announced the launch of an antimicrobial solution which can be used on devices, door handles and sanitary fittings in hospitals and pharmaceutical manufacture to prevent the spread of micro-organisms such as MRSA and E. Coli. Seabrook Technology Group, the Irish-owned manufacturing software specialist, announced a partnership with Toolroom Technology to provide an end-to-end offering for orthopaedic manufacturers.

    Innovation is a key theme of Enterprise Ireland’s Irish Advantage campaign, which supports diversification and export growth by encouraging global buyers to ‘source their Medtech advantage’ and buy Irish. As Kevin Sherry, Enterprise Ireland’s Executive Director of Global Business Development, commented at Med in Ireland, “Our exports and employment are built on Ireland’s world-class innovation system.” This year’s event included its first dedicated Medtech Innovation Showcase to highlight these strengths.

    Ireland’s medtech advantage is supported by investments in Research, Development and Innovation. 60% of medtech companies in Ireland are engaged in R&D and in 2015 companies spent over €205m on such activities. Enterprise Ireland has introduced a range of innovation supports to further foster the development of medical technologies, help clients to win more research funding through the EU’s €80 billion Horizon 2020 fund, and encourage knowledge and intellectual property-sharing. Technology Gateways leverage industry-focused expertise in Institutions of Technologies across the regions. Health Innovation Hub Ireland partners clinicians, academics, and entrepreneurs that work together to accelerate commercialisation. BioInnovate Ireland is a technology training programme in which academia, clinicians and industry collaborate to develop novel medical technologies. Shortly before Med in Ireland, the launch of another such initiative was announced; the BioExcel Medtech Accelerator Programme at NUI Galway, to support our pipeline of innovative start-ups.

    The announcements at Med in Ireland demonstrated the commercial potential of these initiatives. Ireland’s innovation advantage is driving global market penetration for Irish exporters and supporting partnerships with reputable institutions, including Northwell Healthcare and the Cleveland Clinic. Med in Ireland showcased companies that are taking full advantage of these opportunities, building partnerships that secure business wins on a global scale. Medtech companies in Ireland are not only growing sales in traditional export markets but diversifying into new, higher growth markets. Notwithstanding Ireland’s competitiveness in medtech, these companies continue to face uncertainty generated by Brexit. To support them to succeed, we must continually innovate and showcase Irish innovation across the world.