What's Driving the Growth of Medical Manufacturing

Alex D'Souza, Medical Tech Outlook | Friday, March 12, 2021

The new technologies and materials are increasing the growth of the medical manufacturing market. 

FREMONT, CA: Every industry is forced to adapt to new technology and materials and socioeconomic and geopolitical developments. Medical manufacturing is not an exception. Medical device manufacturing alone is projected to grow at 5.6 percent per year between 2017 and 2023, suggesting that this industry is primed for substantial growth in 2020 and beyond.

The reasons for the growth and the industry's solutions for capitalizing on it are represented in the following medical manufacturing trends.

Wearables Create New Form Factors and Opportunities

According to industry analysts, the wearable medical device market will grow faster than medical manufacturing. Wearables are expected to grow at a rate of 27.9 percent per year until at least 2027.

According to a recent study, 58 percent of those polled felt comfortable utilizing wearable health technology. As a result, medical device designers and manufacturers have numerous opportunities to stake a claim in a lucrative market.

Each of these possibilities offers a significant opportunity for business diversification and development, including:

• At-home wearables for patients who cannot travel.

• Biosensors to gather real-time data on patients in unpredictable or unstable conditions. 

• Wearable technologies for keeping employees safe at the workplace or jobsite. 

• Worn devices for children to help parents and caregivers keep track of them. 

New Materials and Design Languages

Development in the wearable and mobile technology industries would offer designers and manufacturers new product categories to experiment with. It even increases the bar in terms of material selection and product design for long and successful lifespans.

The next few years of medical manufacturing growth will be an ongoing battle as businesses compete to provide solutions for:

• Flexible and semiflexible programmable logic boards to securely connect every part without compromising shock absorption or the finished product's durability. 
• There are new strategies to manage heat and battery life in miniaturized wearable devices like sensors, implants, wrist bands, and watches. 
• Compact and long-lasting product housings for use in harsh environments like distribution centers, military bases, and healthcare facilities.