Indian diamond cutting industry gets into stents

Western Indian diamond cutting businesses are beginning to develop coronary stents, producing cheaper copies of stents made by market leaders, according to a report from Bloomberg Business.

The companies, such as Surat-based Sahajanand Medical Technologies, are using existing laser-cutting technology necessary for diamond cutting to cut the metal tubes used in stents, according to the report.

The Indian market saw over 300,000 stent implants in 2014, significantly less than the 1.1 million implanted in the U.S. Despite the lower numbers, India’s much larger population, 4 times the size of the U.S., gives the local companies access to a mostly untapped market.

Local Indian stent makers have gained a 7% share of the stent market in the country, according to data from the Cardiological Society of India. The companies have also begun to expand their businesses outside of India, selling to markets in Latin America, Africa, Asia and even some markets in the European Union, according to the report.

Sahajanad exports stents to 40 countries, including Spain and the U.K., with negotiations being held to distribute to France and Germany, according to CEO Ganesh Sabat.  The company also plans to seek U.S. approval by 2019. So far, no Indian markets have penetrated the U.S. market, according to the report.

Meril Life Sciences, the largest indian stent maker, sells drug-coated stents at 38% lower than Abbot’s newest products, according to the report. Meril also exports to the European Union, giving the major players in stent-making even more competition in the region.

The Indian government is taking its own steps to protect and promote local medtech producers while increasing regulation. India plans to set up a regulator to oversee the country’s $4 billion medical device industry, according to a draft policy released this month, the country’s first effort to regulate an industry that covers everything from thermometers to prostheses.

Analysts believe the Indian medical devices market could touch $50 billion by 2025, driven by a burgeoning middle class in need of more and better hospitals and clinics, which would require more medical devices.

The draft policy issued by the central Department of Pharmaceuticals also proposed an autonomous National Medical Device Authority tasked with promoting the local industry and ensuring adherence to safety standards.

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