The Business Times 4 Feb 2005
Biosensors eyes global stent market with new $1m plant

By: Chen Hui Fen

HOMEGROWN medical device specialist Biosensors International has opened a $1 million plant to produce items used in cardiology.

Biosensors, which already has a plant in Kallang, said the new facility will make products such as drug-coated stents.

It will also be a launch-pad for the company's expansion into other parts of Asia. "We intend to leverage on the expansion of our Singapore infrastructure to grow our business portfolio, " said CEO Lu Yoh Chie. "We believe we are well positioned to reach out the expanding affluent populations of China and India and tap into their increased purchasing power and greater demand for high quality health care."

The new 15,000 sq ft plant at Kaki Bukit employs about 60 people, 30 of whom are operators directly involved in product manufacture. Feedback from cardiologists will be studied to help with plant produce next-generation products.

The existing Kallang plant will continue to focus on making critical care devices, such as transducer kits and catheters.

Biosensors recently announced the clinical trial results of its latest drug-eluting stent called BioMatrix. In a trial in Germany, 120 people were implanted with the products. Only 3.9 per cent of them showed a re-narrowing of the blood vessel, compared with 7.7 per cent for bare metal stents. BioMatrix could help Biosensors gain a foothold in the global drug-eluting stent market, which is estimated to be worth US$6 billion. The company is filling applications to distribute the product in Singapore and Europe.

Already, it has licensed its technology to medical device firms such as Guidant Corp from the US and Terumo Corp of Japan.

Opening the Kaki Bukit plant yesterday, Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry Vivian Balakrishnan said it marks the coming of age for Singapore's medical technology industry. Singapore companies are well-positioned to make forays into the sector due to the island's strengths in precision engineering, electronics and healthcare delivery, he said.