By Belen Gallo, Research Analyst, Healthcare, Latin America

Expomedical is healthcare trade fair held annually in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In 2008, it was the 6th occasion for diverse companies to show their portfolio on hospital and laboratory equipment, medical consumer goods, information technology and services.

The following facts evidence the importance of this event and give a trace on how the Argentine healthcare industry is growing:

• 200 national and 40 international exhibiting companies present
• 53 seminars and training events delivered
• 86 percent of the companies expected to close deals during the event

Expomedical has different purposes depending on each visitor’s point of view. Hospital decision makers participate seeking for new products and services, while scholars or graduated students attended to extend their knowledge on product innovation.

The lack of free seminars in Argentina makes the fair a good occasion for all to learn on new product launches. In Expomedical, not all the trainings were free, but it gave the opportunity for graduate students to learn about the specific applications of each technology and come closer to professionals’ experience. Moreover, a library was available for discussion on specific topics and enhancing the purpose of expanding knowledge during the event.

Another relevant aspect was the presence of associations. Eighteen associations, including ANMAT (National Administration of Drugs, Food and Medical Technology), AMA (Argentine Medical Association), CADIEM (Argentine Chamber of Medical Products Importers and Distributors), CAEHFA (Chamber of Medical Equipment Produced in Argentina) and SAR (Argentine Association of Radiology) had the opportunity to present their current projects and give conferences on specific topics related to healthcare. For example, ANMAT gave a seminar on product registration; CADIEM arranged a conference on malpractice; and SAR presented the advances on imaging technology.

From the supply side, global players such as Draeger Medical, Philips, Maquet, Hill Rom and Stryker grasped the opportunity to exhibit new solutions and enhance their brand perception as product innovators and quality suppliers. For instance, Draeger displayed its new compact ventilator for semi critical patients (Carina) and the first ventilator controlled by microprocessor (Evita XL).

Surprisingly, other players such as Siemens were not present at the event. The reason was the unintended overlapping dates of Expomedical and the SAR Congress. Both events are of major importance to the Argentinean healthcare community. The main difference relies on the specificity of the SAR Congress, focusing only on radiology and gathers experts in that field. Next year, both events are planned to take place separated. Thus, the number of imaging companies present at Expomedical 2009 is expected to increase in comparison with this year.

Regarding Asian industry participants, the fair showed an increasing input of Chinese, Taiwanese and Thai companies. As expected, Chinese brands focused on patient monitoring technologies. Mindray exhibited its Beneview T8, the latest release in multi parameter patient monitoring and life support systems. On the other hand, Taiwanese and Thai players were focused on medical devices. Bestgen Biotech and Tai Doc Technology Corporation, both Taiwanese companies, presented their ultimate blood glucose monitoring systems: Major III and Cleverchek, respectively. Finally, the main Thai company highlighted in the fair was Meditop, which displayed its Elisa rapid tests.

Overall, Expomedical serves as a proof on how the Asian industry participants are growing in the region. Chinese companies accounted for 10 percent of total international participation; Taiwanese brands represented a 7 percent of this cluster and Thai a 3 percent. The remaining players were divided among other countries such as Germany, United States, France and India. Japanese brands’ attendance was scarce due to a minor focus on Imaging Technology, however this tendency is expected to revert in 2009.

This fair is a clear example about the various opportunities in the Argentine healthcare sector. Since its beginning in 2003, the number of industry participants, visitors and events increased substantially.

The following figure illustrates Expomedical’s performance along its six years

Today the fair is a major event in the industry. Expomedical is becoming key platform for companies and medical institutions to meet and learn on the latest technologies or developments.