BUSINESS AREA

Business area Medtech

In the Medtech business area, the subsidiaries offer products and services in the field of medical technology, as well as assistive equipment for use in homecare. Medtech’s offering mainly focuses on public funded healthcare care, homecare and social care in Europe.

The subsidiaries in the Medtech business area actively maintain a local presence and awareness, with the global reach of the group. Healthcare services today address national interests, with common and global challenges. Consequently, the need for products and services is essentially similar, regardless of geographic market. The companies offer their own products, a broad selection of products from other suppliers, and services such as training, support and service. The product line ranges from simple consumables to advanced instruments for surgical procedures, as well as welfare technology, and assistive technology for the elderly and disabled. All in all, the product range requires a solid foundation of medical knowledge to guide the customers. Around 90 percent of sales take place through public procurement procedures.

Market trend in 2021

The business situation for our Medtech companies was effected by the pandemic during the year. For most of 2021, healthcare services were focused on treating COVID-19 patients, with elective surgery standing back. As restrictions in our markets have eased, we have seen an increase in activity, which slowed again at the end of the year with the fourth wave. Organic growth, excluding COVID-19 related products, was 2 percent for the year.

Sales of medtech equipment were relatively stable during the year, but with large differences between the product segments. Sales of personal protective equipment normalised during the year as hospitals largely had inventory to meet their needs. Activity in elective surgery was generally low throughout the year in all markets, but our companies increased sales of medical device products of other types instead. At the same time, several companies have been actively working to increase margins, both through price increases to compensate for higher raw material and freight costs and by terminating less profitable supplier contracts.

At the start of the year, our homecare companies saw challenges due to reduced opportunities for testing and installing various assistive devices. In the second quarter, customers opened up and sales increased. There is major interest in the market for both our digital solutions and other assistive technology, but due to the recurring restrictions during the fourth quarter, the pace of investment declined once again.

As a result of the pandemic, Europe’s healthcare services are facing major challenges with long healthcare queues and a growing and ageing population, which will require significant investment in healthcare services in the long term.

In 2021, six acquisitions were completed in the business area; AddVision (formerly Vision Ophthalmology Group), Healthcare 21 Group (HC21), Fischer Medical, Camanio, Telia Health Monitoring and MBA Incorporado.

The largest acquisitions in the business area in 2021 were Healthcare 21, AddVision and MBA Incorporado. These acquisitions have provided significant growth in Europe, opening up new and larger markets, such as the UK, with more customers and new product segments, including ophthalmology, eye surgery. During the year, sales in markets outside the Nordic region accounted for almost 70 percent of net sales, compared with just under 20 percent the previous year. The expansion strengthens both existing and new supplier relationships and creates a larger internal network with increased opportunities to sell our own products in new markets.

MEDTECH’S STRENGTHS

• Employees with extensive medical experience, local knowledge and a high level of service, as well as product developers in welfare technology

• Broad range including both in-house developed products and products from other manufacturers

• Great flexibility regarding customised solutions, as well as cutting edge expertise in public procurement procedures

• European distribution and service network for the Group’s own products and services, as well as the products and services of other suppliers