Covid-19 Drives Aatmanirbhar Bharat: Medical Device Industry Sees Huge Jump In Demand For Ventilators

The Global Ventilator Market is estimated to reach USD 9.09 Billion by 2028, up from USD 6.59 Billion in 2021, according to Vantage Market Research report.

It goes without saying that the Covid-19 pandemic exposed the realities of the healthcare system in India, which has been grappling with inadequate infrastructure including hospitals, medical devices and equipment, as well as an acute shortage of health workers. However, the health crisis also raised the visibility quotient of ventilators and other lifesaving devices among public like never before. The Covid-19 pandemic also gave a big boost to Aatmanirbhar Bharat movement in the medical device industry.

For example, Max Ventilator, a leading Indian ventilator maker, has announced that it registered a phenomenal 15X jump in demand for its lifesaving breathing machines in 2021.

The Vantage Market Research report has estimated that the total Global Ventilator Market may reach USD 9.09 Billion by 2028, up from USD 6.59 Billion in 2021, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.1 per cent.

Ashok Patel, the founder and brain behind Max Ventilator, said, "We all know how last year particularly had been a tumultuous one both from ordinary patients' and the authorities' points of view. This was due to the hugely devastating second wave that we experienced last year. And as a manufacturer, we too had our share of challenges.

"However, even in the face of such odds, we largely continued to keep our plants and assembly lines running while adapting to the highs and lows of the demand in the market. So, during the extraordinary high demand in the second wave, we heavily increased our production. At the same time, we kept our production lines flexible adjusting to the fall in Covid-driven demand during the receding of the second wave last year. Yet, over-all we not only saw a 15X rise in demand for our ventilators last year, we also posted a 92 per cent growth in our revenues," he added.

Promoting the Atmanirbharta drive

Anesthesia ventilators and ICU ventilators meant for adults and children were particularly in high demand last year, according to Max Ventilator.

Patel stated that their ICU ventilator Proton Plus was one of the bestselling products last year. They sold more than a thousand Proton Plus machines apart from other machines like anaesthesia ventilators and ventilators meant for children.

"Now today even when omicron seems to be fading away, there is no certainly just yet. Given the supply chain constraints, both global and national, and in order to fully participate in the admirable make-in-India campaign and truly live the Atmanirbharta drive, we have now begun to make our own compressors and major printed circuit boards," Patel asserted.

Moreover, the company said it is helping local manufacturers produce components such as support arms and fluid bottles, etc, which were earlier sourced from outside the country.

"Now, we are ensuring that 75 per cent of our components are procured locally within the country," Patel added.