Medtronic to Launch Surgical Robot in FY2019, Targeting Cost Reduction and Market Expansion
According to Reuters, Bryan Hanson, head of Medtronic’s Minimally Invasive Therapies Group, recently stated that Medtronic will launch its surgical robot before fiscal year 2019, with the first unit debuting in the Indian market.
Hanson stated at Medtronic’s Investor Day that surgical robots would generate “substantial revenue” in fiscal year 2019.
In robot-assisted surgery, surgeons can control the robotic arms via a computer console. Compared with traditional open surgery, this approach involves smaller incisions and is increasingly being utilized in prostatectomy and hysterectomy procedures.
It is understood that following its market launch, Medtronic’s robotic system will compete with Intuitive Surgical’s da Vinci robot, which is currently the only robotic system available on the market for abdominal surgery. Additionally, Verb Surgical, a startup jointly backed by Johnson & Johnson and Google, is expected to become a competitor as it develops its own robotic platform.
Medtronic’s entry into the surgical robotics field aims to reduce costs associated with robotic surgery. “Currently, these costs are prohibitive. We will seek ways to remove this barrier,” said Hanson.
Medtronic, headquartered in Minneapolis, currently employs 150 staff members in surgical robotics R&D, located across Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Colorado in the United States, as well as in Germany.
Medtronic’s product portfolio includes pacemakers, heart valves, and spinal implants. At its Investor Day event, Medtronic also announced plans to launch hip and knee replacement devices as part of its hospital orthopedic solutions.
It is reported that Medtronic has acquired a company named Responsive Orthopedics to manufacture these devices. Knee replacement devices are expected to hit the market in the first half of 2017, with hip replacement devices following one year later.