by Nitin Dixit, Senior Industry Analyst, Healthcare, Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific.

Unlike pharmaceuticals, the medical device segment in the healthcare industry is a very broad segment in terms of both breadth and depth of product portfolio.

There are at least 40 different product categories ranging from capital intensive, heavy equipment, imaging products, e.g. CT and MRI, to inexpensive skin closure materials e.g. absorbable and non-absorbable sutures and skin glue. Adding to the complexity there are multiple stake holders involved, directly or indirectly, in usage and purchasing decision in a hospital such as surgeon, nurse, medical superintendent, finance officer, pharmacist, warehouse in-charge and more.

Such heterogeneity in devices' application, price and consumption is unique in the entire healthcare industry and therefore requires 'specialized capabilities' to distribute them. Therefore, the medical device distributor is an important part of business for a device manufacturer.

Careful selection and profitable partnership with the "right" distributor is strategically important as well as a challenging decision/step for any medical device manufacturer to be successful in any market.

That is especially true in emerging markets, such as Vietnam and Indonesia, as several new OEM's are pouring in these markets to gain a share of the 'attractive' pie. At least initially, no device manufacturers have the full capacity to go-direct to the market and thus they have to rely on distributor to do well in the market.

There are thousands of distributors to choose from for a perfect match. For instance Vietnam has 848 and Indonesia has 667 distributors as of 2011.

Other challenges in distributor management include, but is not limited to, training the distributor staff, owning the end customer and managing inventory, ensuring pricing transparency and overcoming language and skill barriers.

Therefore it is essential for an OEM to understand the dynamics, best practices, trends (current and future) of the medical device distribution market in markets like Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand. It is also important for a manufacturer to know Do's and Don'ts during negotiation and how to be successful in these markets.

Frost & Sullivan's latest report, "Medical Devices Distributor profiling in Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and South Korea" includes a detailed analysis of the medical device distributor market in these markets and:

• Different ways to select a "right" distributor
• Detailed profiles of key device distributors in these markets along with benchmarking and rating each one of them
• Do's and Don'ts for a successful partnership in these markets
• Distribution landscape—current and future trends

This article is authored by Nitin Dixit, Senior Industry Analyst, Healthcare, Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific.

Media contact, please email carrie.low@frost.com or djeremiah@frost.com