medtech surgical award - frost & sullivan...with its innovative design and advanced planning...

2016 Global Surgical Robotics for Neurosurgical Interventions

Company of the Year Award

2016

BEST PRACTICES RESEARCH

Contents

Background and Company Performance ........................................................................ 3

Industry Challenges .............................................................................................. 3

Visionary Innovation & Performance and Customer Impact of Medtech SA ................... 3

Conclusion........................................................................................................... 4

Significance of Company of the Year ............................................................................. 5

Understanding Company of the Year ............................................................................. 8

Key Benchmarking Criteria .................................................................................... 8

The Intersection between 360-Degree Research and Best Practices Awards ....................... 9

Research Methodology .......................................................................................... 9

Best Practices Recognition: 10 Steps to Researching, Identifying, and Recognizing Best Practices ................................................................................................................. 10

About Frost & Sullivan .............................................................................................. 11


Background and Company Performance

Industry Challenges

The United States (US) surgical robotics market is experiencing rapid growth, primarily due

to the extensive system benefits to both surgeons and patients. Additionally, patient

interest in robot-assisted surgeries has risen due to increased amounts of clinical research

and market participant advertising that emphasizes these benefits. Surgical robot-assisted

systems allow surgeons to plan upcoming surgeries in more detail, promoting increased

accuracy and workflow. The systems also provide higher safety rates by reducing surgeon

fatigue and hand tremors and, in many cases, reduce surgical time. This decreases hospital

costs of operating room (OR) use and allows surgeons to increase revenue by being able to

conduct more surgeries. Since surgical assistant robot systems allow for minimally-invasive

procedures, patients experience less bleeding, pain, and risks of infection, thereby

decreasing recovery time. Furthermore, surgical assistant robot systems used for brain

surgery eliminate the need for a stereotactic frame, further reducing patient pain and

anxiety from having to undergo a pre-surgery procedure in which a support frame is

screwed into their cranium.

While the surgical assisted robot systems market is experiencing rapid growth, the market

still faces many challenges—primarily in regards to entrance—creating a compact, top-

heavy market structure. Developing robot systems with accuracy, precision, and an easy-to-

use platform takes years of research and development (R&D), and requires large upfront

capital. According to Frost & Sullivan research, these long and expensive R&D times can

lead to completed systems being marketed at, sometimes, over one million dollars.

In addition to purchasing the systems, hospitals are required to pay for annual

maintenance, and lose valuable OR space from bulky robotic systems. Hospitals must also

train hospital staff to use the robot system for optimal return on their investment. Finally,

due to the developing nature of the market, insurance reimbursement codes have not been

restructured to account for expensive maintenance, training, and system set-up, leading to

hospitals being only partially reimbursed for procedures utilizing this technology. While Frost

& Sullivan estimates that the reimbursement structure will be updated to take these

features into account within the next 8 to 10 years, at present, many hospitals are hesitant

to invest the capital required to buy and maintain these systems.

Visionary Innovation & Performance and Customer Impact of Medtech SA

In order to combat these challenges while still providing highly accurate and easy-to-use

systems, Medtech SA has created the ROSA™ robotic device for use in MIS neurosurgery

applications. This device provides all the added benefits of robotic-assisted surgery with a

lower than average system cost. Medtech SA’s experience creating surgical assistant robotic

devices has led the company to become one of the robotics industry’s leaders in

neurological applications, and the company’s recent development of the breakthrough

ROSA™ Spine system. This is the second year that Frost & Sullivan has recognized Medtech

SA for its ongoing commitment to groundbreaking innovation.


History of Experience Leading to Best-in-Class Design

Headquartered in Montpellier, France, Medtech SA has maintained a commitment to robotic

development throughout its history. The company started creating second generation

robotics suited for daily OR use in 2002 with its development of the BRIGIT™ system for

robotic-assisted knee replacement. The machine’s advanced design led a large orthopedic

technology company, Zimmer, to purchase the entire patent portfolio. With this influx of

capital, Medtech SA set its sights higher: the creation of a robot-assistant for neurosurgical

procedures, more specifically, spine surgery. Medtech SA recognized the reduced amount of

complications in using a robot for brain surgery as compared to spine surgery—primarily the

inability to completely stabilize a patient’s spine during surgery due to the patient’s

breathing patterns—and decided to first develop a robot for brain surgery applications. It

then used it as a benchmark for later expansion of this technology towards spine surgery

applications. Medtech SA developed the ROSA™ Brain system, providing a way for surgeons

to plan and perform minimally-invasive brain surgery. After being launched for clinical trials

in Europe in 2008, the ROSA™ Brain received a CE Mark of approval in 2009 and FDA

approval in 2010. The demand for the system has grown rapidly, and it is now utilized in

over 50 centers worldwide.

Staying Focused on Development Goals

In 2011, Medtech SA fulfilled its original goal of providing a solution for robotic-assisted

spine surgery by expanding the ROSA™ system’s platform. This new platform allows real-

time monitoring of patient movements and compensates for these movements without the

necessity to stabilize the robot using the surrounding vertebrae. The ROSA™ Spine received

its CE mark in 2014, and Amiens-Picardy University Hospital was the first hospital worldwide

to use the robot for spine procedures after receiving the CE mark in December of that year.

The pre-CE mark world premiere was completed by Montpellier University Hospital. Medtech

SA is currently in the process of training and assisting in the ROSA™ spine’s implementation

in three other centers in Europe. The platform’s design and trial results have been

submitted to the FDA, and Medtech SA is hoping to receive approval within the end of the

year.

Commitment to Unique Features to Address Unmet Needs

With its previous experience in developing surgical robotics for orthopedic applications,

Medtech SA was able to understand and overcome all the challenges of developing and

using these robots for surgery during upfront development of the ROSA™ platform.

Neurosurgery requires surgeons to complete complex tasks; performing neurosurgery under

minimally-invasive conditions reduces the visual field, further increasing the difficulty of the

technique. The ROSA™ system overcomes this difficulty with its advanced planning and

positioning software. Pre-operative scans are integrated into the system which creates

three-dimensional images from the scans. Surgeons use these images to identify their

targets, plan their approach, and anticipate any possible complications before surgery

begins. The surgeon loads his plan into the ROSA™ system, allowing the system to follow

and assist him throughout the procedure according to that plan.


If the surgeon needs to change his plan in mid-operation, the system can easily adapt and

automatically react to the changes, ensuring optimized workflow of the new process.

Repeatability and reproducibility are easily obtained with the ROSA™ robot. Since Medtech

SA has previous experience of developing the BRIGIT™ system, its engineers were able to

create the ROSA™ system with less upfront R&D time, allowing the company to offer the

system for $400,000 to $750,000 (depending on added capabilities), well below the average

industry cost.

Added Benefits of the ROSA™ Spine

Minimally-invasive spine surgery shares the same difficulties as brain surgery, such as

reduced visual field, but includes added complications like the inability to fully immobilize

the patient. Accurate intraoperative planning is obtained with ROSA™ Spine. During

surgery, patients need to breathe, and when the surgeon operates he exerts pressure on

the patient causing the spine to move. To overcome this movement, surgeons operating

without robot-assistant systems have to compensate for the body’s movement, decreasing

surgical accuracy. Previously developed robots for spine surgery assistance were designed

to be bone-mounted but, due to its weight and stability, the ROSA™ Spine robotic arm

offers firm, accurate instrument guidance. Moreover, it has a dynamic guidance system that

tracks and responds to patient movement in real time, providing compensation for the

body’s movements without the additional risk of clamping onto the spine. Since the design

of the ROSA™ robot is the same as for brain and spine surgery, Medtech SA has expanded

its software and array of instruments to offer a platform that can be used for both types of

surgery, providing optimal value to centers using the robot-assistant for these two

applications.

Commitment to Service and Training Leading to Optimized Robot Use

Medtech SA provides high-quality service and maintenance support to its customers,

ensuring their satisfaction. Right from the initial purchase and installation, Medtech SA

sends a clinical support technician (CST) to the health center’s site. The CST is responsible

for the initial system set-up and configurations to ensure its smooth implementation into the

spatial constraints of ORs. Additionally, CSTs are responsible for training hospital staff to

ensure optimized system use.

CSTs are located both at Medtech SA’s worldwide facilities as well as distributor sites,

allowing Medtech SA to maintain fast service turnaround times to provide customers

maximum returns on their investment. CSTs ensure that the systems are optimally used by

being present in the operating rooms during surgical procedures. CSTs can see the

technology in action, collect feedback on the current technology’s capabilities and also

provide ideas for future system improvements. To reduce large maintenance costs, Medtech

SA performs preventive maintenance checks on its systems, reducing system downtime and

costs associated with large system issues by quickly identifying potential problems.


Design Success Evidenced in Rapid Revenue Growth

Medtech SA’s success is evidenced by the company’s rapid product line expansion and

revenue growth. As of June 2015, Medtech SA reported a total of 48 ROSA™ robots in use

worldwide, including 21 in North America and the first ROSA™ Spine system in Europe.

Furthermore, the company achieved an overall 130% revenue growth between 2014 and

2015, growing from $3.4 million to $7.9 million. Medtech SA plans to maintain its steady

growth rate, and continuously acquires new, talented team members to offer advanced

development, service, and support. The company continues expanding its R&D department

by employing experts across fields, allowing advancements on the ROSA™ system as the

industry identifies new needs. Medtech SA’s R&D team also maintains close relationships

with key industry opinion leaders and academic partners to remain on the cutting-edge of

innovation and development. Due to the high demand for advanced surgical-assistant

robotic devices, Medtech SA estimates that its growth will primarily continue in the US.

Conclusion

Surgical-assistant robots have contributed to increasing the number of minimally-invasive

neurosurgical interventions, reducing operating and recovery time, patient pain, and the risk

of infection. Medtech SA’s advanced ROSA™ Brain system is a pioneer in the industry,

allowing surgeons to plan their surgery more efficiently, pre-operatively, leading to greater

savings due to reduced operating times. The company has expanded its ROSA™ Brain

technology to create the ROSA™ Spine system for spine applications. The robot’s advanced

tracking system overcomes the complications of patient movement and increases procedure

accuracy. With its worldwide distribution of advanced systems, the company experienced a

130% revenue growth in the past year.

With its innovative design and advanced planning platform, Medtech SA has earned Frost

& Sullivan’s 2016 Global Company of the Year award for surgical robotics in the

neurosurgical interventions market.


Significance of Company of the Year

To win the Company of the Year award (i.e., to be recognized as a leader not only in your

industry, but among your non-industry peers as well) requires a company to demonstrate

excellence in growth, innovation, and leadership. This kind of excellence typically

translates into superior performance in three key areas: demand generation, brand

development, and competitive positioning. These areas serve as the foundation of a

company’s future success and prepare it to deliver on the two criteria that define the

Company of the Year Award (Visionary Innovation & Performance and Customer Impact).


Understanding Company of the Year

As discussed above, driving demand, brand strength, and competitive differentiation all

play a critical role in delivering unique value to customers. This three-fold focus, however,

must ideally be complemented by an equally rigorous focus on visionary innovation to

enhance customer value and impact.

Key Benchmarking Criteria

For the Company of the Year Award, Frost & Sullivan analysts independently evaluated

two key factors—Visionary Innovation & Performance and Customer Impact—according to

the criteria identified below.

Visionary Innovation & Performance

Criterion 1: Addressing Unmet Needs

Criterion 2: Visionary Scenarios through Mega Trends

Criterion 3: Implementation Best Practices

Criterion 4: Blue Ocean Strategy

Criterion 5: Financial Performance

Customer Impact

Criterion 1: Price/Performance Value

Criterion 2: Customer Purchase Experience

Criterion 3: Customer Ownership Experience

Criterion 4: Customer Service Experience

Criterion 5: Brand Equity


The Intersection between 360-Degree Research and Best Practices Awards

Research Methodology

Frost & Sullivan’s 360-degree research

methodology represents the analytical

rigor of our research process. It offers a

360-degree-view of industry challenges,

trends, and issues by integrating all 7 of

Frost & Sullivan's research methodologies.

Too often, companies make important

growth decisions based on a narrow

understanding of their environment,

leading to errors of both omission and

commission. Successful growth strategies

are founded on a thorough understanding

of market, technical, economic, financial,

customer, best practices, and demographic

analyses. The integration of these research

disciplines into the 360-degree research

methodology provides an evaluation

platform for benchmarking industry players and for identifying those performing at best-

in-class levels.

360-DEGREE RESEARCH: SEEING ORDER IN

THE CHAOS


Best Practices Recognition: 10 Steps to Researching, Identifying, and Recognizing Best Practices

Frost & Sullivan Awards follow a 10-step process to evaluate award candidates and assess

their fit with select best practice criteria. The reputation and integrity of the Awards are

based on close adherence to this process.

STEP OBJECTIVE KEY ACTIVITIES OUTPUT

1 Monitor, target, and screen

Identify award recipient candidates from around the globe

Conduct in-depth industry research

Identify emerging sectors Scan multiple geographies

Pipeline of candidates who potentially meet all best-practice criteria

2 Perform 360-degree research

Perform comprehensive, 360-degree research on all candidates in the pipeline

Interview thought leaders and industry practitioners

Assess candidates’ fit with best-practice criteria

Rank all candidates

Matrix positioning all candidates’ performance relative to one another

3

Invite thought leadership in best practices

Perform in-depth examination of all candidates

Confirm best-practice criteria Examine eligibility of all

candidates Identify any information gaps

Detailed profiles of all ranked candidates

4

Initiate research director review

Conduct an unbiased evaluation of all candidate profiles

Brainstorm ranking options Invite multiple perspectives

on candidates’ performance Update candidate profiles

Final prioritization of all eligible candidates and companion best-practice positioning paper

5

Assemble panel of industry experts

Present findings to an expert panel of industry thought leaders

Share findings Strengthen cases for

candidate eligibility Prioritize candidates

Refined list of prioritized award candidates

6

Conduct global industry review

Build consensus on award candidates’ eligibility

Hold global team meeting to review all candidates

Pressure-test fit with criteria Confirm inclusion of all

eligible candidates

Final list of eligible award candidates, representing success stories worldwide

7 Perform quality check

Develop official award consideration materials

Perform final performance benchmarking activities

Write nominations Perform quality review

High-quality, accurate, and creative presentation of nominees’ successes

8

Reconnect with panel of industry experts

Finalize the selection of the best-practice award recipient

Review analysis with panel Build consensus Select winner

Decision on which company performs best against all best-practice criteria

9 Communicate recognition

Inform award recipient of award recognition

Present award to the CEO Inspire the organization for

continued success Celebrate the recipient’s

performance

Announcement of award and plan for how recipient can use the award to enhance the brand

10 Take strategic action

Upon licensing, company may share award news with stakeholders and customers

Coordinate media outreach Design a marketing plan Assess award’s role in future

strategic planning

Widespread awareness of recipient’s award status among investors, media personnel, and employees


About Frost & Sullivan

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medtech surgical award - frost & sullivan...with its innovative design and advanced planning...

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