SanKai Technology: China's First Smart Elderly Care Stock Files IPO Prospectus
In January 2016, VCBeat’s VBInsight published its first in-depth review titled “A Comprehensive Analysis of Asset-Light Entrepreneurial Models in Elderly Care.” In March, it released “A New Entrepreneurial Frontier Has Emerged: The Asset-Light Elderly Care Boom Is Here.” Starting this week, we will gradually publish reports on startups operating in niche segments of the asset-light elderly care sector. This is the fourth article in the series.
On April 21, SANKAI Polytron Technologies, a company specializing in smart elderly care, officially rang the bell for its listing on the National Equities Exchange and Quotations (NEE). As the first publicly traded company in China’s smart elderly care sector, SANKAI’s achievements over the six years since its founding are truly impressive. In 2010, amidst the Zhongguancun Software Park near Peking University and Tsinghua University, a company named SANKAI Polytron Technologies was quietly established. Who could have imagined that this company would become a pioneer in China’s smart elderly care industry?
The Founding Background of SANKAI Technologies
Why Establish SANKAI Polytron? In response, Leng Honghao, CEO of SANKAI Polytron, told VCBeat: “The reasons are quite simple, primarily falling into two aspects: one is population aging, and the other is the severe insufficiency in the capacity and quality of elderly care services.”
It is reported that the National Working Commission on Aging has projected that China’s elderly population will reach 300 million by 2025 and 430 million by 2050, meaning one in every three people will be an older adult. The sheer size of this aging population and its rapid growth rate promise immeasurable demographic dividends and market prospects.
Secondly, the increase in average life expectancy has prolonged the empty-nest period for elderly-only households, while the number of the oldest-old and those with disabilities or dementia continues to rise. Although the government is making concerted efforts to establish a multi-tiered elderly care security system, the supply of elderly care services remains insufficient to meet the substantial demand. By the end of 2014, the city had only approximately 109,000 institutional care beds, falling short of the growing demand. The hardware conditions of elderly care facilities suffer from issues such as inadequate overall capacity, unreasonable distribution of institutional care facilities, and low construction standards. In terms of management, challenges remain, including unclear targeting of service populations, incomplete supporting policies, and imperfect management standards.
SANKAI Polytron’s Four Major Service Systems: Platform + Smart Hardware + Big Data + Value-Added Services
For a startup, entering the elderly care industry through capital-intensive approaches such as building senior living communities is clearly impractical. After conducting an in-depth analysis of the then-current state of the elderly care sector, SANKAI Technologies identified a significant shortfall in service capabilities among elderly care institutions. Based on this insight, Leng Honghao decided to target the business-to-business (B2B) segment. In 2013, the SANKAI team pioneered the development of China’s first Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)-based smart elderly care software. In June 2015, SANKAI Technologies secured RMB 12 million in Series A financing. Leveraging its online platform and adopting an integrated model of “software + hardware + value-added services,” the company provides comprehensive cloud platform services to physical elderly care institutions.
1. Smart Elderly Care Cloud Platform
Operations Platform: Includes call center management, health services, domestic housekeeping services, cultural and entertainment services, membership management, all-in-one card management, financial management, emergency assistance, anti-wandering features, product sales, and data statistics and analysis. It primarily enables monitoring of health metrics for the elderly, including pulse, blood pressure, blood glucose, body fat, blood oxygen saturation, weight, electrocardiogram (ECG), and complete blood count (CBC). The system sends alert notifications to caregivers and family members, while the health assessment system generates regular health reports to facilitate comprehensive health management for the elderly.
Client Side: Comprising the Service Provider Platform, Health Management Platform, and Family Member Portal. Through the client side, the system primarily facilitates integration with medical institutions and professional health management organizations cooperating with operating entities, and enables data sharing with the cloud platform. Medical personnel or experts can remotely access this system to analyze the health status of elderly individuals and provide corresponding health assessments and recommendations.
2. Smart Hardware
SANKAI Polytron Technologies’ smart hardware portfolio encompasses six major categories: All-in-One Card/Gateways, Wearable Devices, Health Monitoring Instruments, Smart Security Systems, Smart Mattresses, and Indoor Positioning Systems.
3. Big Data Services
Through big data health reports, various personal health information can be intelligently analyzed to promptly generate exclusive, personalized health promotion plans. By conducting a comprehensive analysis of long-term monitored health indicators such as blood pressure, blood glucose, and body weight, mathematical models are used to simulate the overall control status, trends, and fluctuations of these metrics. This presents users with the dynamic changes in their personal indicators and their relationship to population-level benchmarks. Furthermore, by integrating users’ personal health records, targeted guidance on managing blood pressure and blood glucose is provided.
4. Value-Added Services
The platform primarily offers housekeeping, e-commerce, senior clubs, and medication delivery services. Through these value-added services, it enables seniors to address all daily living needs without leaving home, while also allowing service providers to deliver more precisely targeted and professional services.
Six Industry Solutions Built on Four Major Service Systems
Supported by its four major service systems, SANKAI Polytron has tailored and integrated the components of these systems for different user groups, developing solutions includingHome-based Elderly Care,Community-based elderly care, senior living real estate, civil affairs-led elderly care,Nursing homes,Medical-Nursing Integrationand other service operation and management systems, thereby more precisely meeting the needs of different elderly care sectors and models for smart elderly care.
It is precisely due to the technological leadership and originality of SANKAI Technologies that, as of 2015, more than 419 elderly care institutions had entered into business collaborations with the company. These partners include industry giants such as Poly Real Estate, the China National Committee on Aging’s East China Pharmaceutical Group, and others, collectively serving over 1.4 million seniors. The continuous increase in the number of partner institutions and the steady improvement in service quality have indirectly enabled a growing number of elderly individuals to benefit from these services. For Leng Honghao, this outcome is even more gratifying than business growth.
In March 2016, SANKAI Polytron’s application for listing was approved, and it officially debuted on the New Third Board. As China’s first publicly traded company specializing in smart elderly care, SANKAI ushered in a new era of development.
In terms of exploring future business models, Leng Honghao has outlined a clear strategic roadmap:
Strive to establish cooperative partnerships with domestic elderly care institutions, real estate firms, and other relevant entities to the greatest extent possible.
Positioned as a platform, providing comprehensive product services to all elderly care institutions
Strengthen collaborative partnerships with various elderly care institutions through capital investment, equity swaps, and other forms.
Coexistence of Social Responsibility and Commercial Interests
“I believe that, first and foremost, a businessperson is a human being. My aim is to help more elderly people live better lives. If SANKAI Technologies can earn the recognition of seniors across society, that would hold far greater significance than how much money we make,” said Leng Honghao, CEO of SANKAI Technologies. From VCBeat’s perspective, when it comes to balancing the pursuit of commercial profits with assuming social responsibility, Leng Honghao places greater emphasis on his own sense of duty. A company’s market value is not determined by how much money it can earn, but by how much value and wealth it can create for society. Since its inception, SANKAI Technologies has been sustained by a clear and steadfast belief.
The Meaning of “Sankai”: The Beginning of All Things, Cyclical Renewal, and Endless Vitality. The character “San” (Three) originates from Laozi’s Tao Te Ching: “The Tao produced One; One produced Two; Two produced Three; Three produced all things.” Interpretation: “San” represents the triad of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity, symbolizing “all things.” “Kai” means beginning, signifying “cyclical renewal.” “I hope Sankai will thrive with endless vitality and endure for a century,” said Leng Honghao to VCBeat.
Chronicle of Major Events at SANKAI
In 2010, the Peking University team led by Leng Honghao founded Sankai (Beijing) Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Sankai");
In January 2011, SANKAI signed a contract with Urumqi to develop the 96577 Service Network Center System;
In March 2012, SANKAI developed health examination systems, prescription review and rational drug use systems, and expanded its client base to include multiple hospitals such as the General Hospital of the Chinese People's Armed Police Forces and the 302 Hospital.
In September 2013, SANKAI began developing an operation and management system for home-based elderly care health services. During the R&D period, SANKAI identified the significant potential of the health and elderly care industry and decided to make “informatization of health and elderly care” its core business.
In 2014, SANKAI launched and promoted its health and elderly care cloud platform. Throughout the year, SANKAI signed contracts with multiple physical elderly care service institutions, achieving rapid business growth;
In mid-2015, the Series A financing was completed;
On September 10, 2015, the company was officially restructured into a joint-stock company, and its name was changed to “Beijing SANKAI Polytron Technologies Inc.”;
In March 2016, Beijing SANKAI Polytron Technologies Inc. was listed on the National Equities Exchange and Quotations (NEEQ), becoming China’s first publicly traded company in the smart elderly care sector.