The Medica/Compamed tradeshow was held from November 18th till 21st in Düsseldorf, it is Europe’s largest exhibition and conference in the field of medical technology. The Medica and Compamed combined have over 6000 exhibiting companies and in 2019 the fair saw over 120 000 visitors, around two thirds of which came from outside Germany.
This year Screentec joined Oulu Health and their pavilion with a plethora of companies from Oulu. Business Finland wasn’t represented at the fair this year, so people were able to sample some of the great innovative companies from Oulu. Sample, because over the past 10 years Oulu has become quite the hub of technological and medical innovation!
For the 2nd year in a row, there was a large interest in the field of wearable and disposable sensors and the Medica is the perfect place to promote and develop these devices. The entire supply chain for wearable devices is well represented throughout the Medica and Compamed halls. From research partners such as VTT and Printocent, to design studios like the Belgian Pili Pili and manufacturers like Screentec, Sanmina, Innokas Medical and many others to the actual wearable companies themselves, such as Kipuwex and Movesense, to name but a few. There are always many visitors from hospitals and medical device distributers as well, to complete the chain from idea to end user.
The presence of this supply chain is one of the reasons the Medica is so important for the development of wearable technology. Wearable technology is not exactly a new field of medicine as most of the technologies utilised have been in use for decades. However, advances in computer chip, telecommunications and printed electronics have enabled much smaller, flexible devices that are finally at an affordable price level for consumers. This has caused a massive spike of interest for wearable technology over the past few years.
When it comes to disposable sensors and electrodes, one of the most common approaches is still that of hybrid electronics. Hybrid electronics combine conventional and printed electronics to make devices that have attempt to overcome the limitations of both technologies. Where printed electronics allows for the creation of soft, flexible and stretchable components and sensors, it is not yet possible to beat the functionality and size efficiency of a traditional microchip. While printed electronics is becoming more prominent and advanced every year, for the moment the integration of disposable sports and medical sensors is still a very relevant topic and is likely to remain this way for the coming years.
Screentec was offered to discuss the integration of disposable medical electrodes at the IVAM forum for high technology. Integration is a topic Screentec is very familiar with, a large part of what we do for our customers is making sure that their sensor is well adapted to record the signals it is supposed to, fits well on the appropriate spot or position of the subject’s body and that it is user friendly. In addition to this there are a plethora of different factors which need to be considered, all the more reason to make sure you are well prepared right from the start.
There were also a lot of presentations given in other parts of the trade fair, such as at the Wearable Technologies pavilion, which attracted quite a lot of interest and attention. This is not surprising considering the increasing popularity of the theme. It will be interesting to see if this growth will continue into next year as well!
But no matter what your business is, as long as it is related to medical technology or pharmaceuticals, the Medica and Compamed are the place to be. With the addition of a networking app and with some good preparation beforehand, the event can bring a serious boost to your business like no other.
We hope to see you there next year!
