Bone and Teeth Medical Devices Market Future Opportunity in Indonesia and ASEAN

Jakarta, January 26, 2023 - The number of traffic and workplace accidents in Indonesia remains high. In 2022, there were 265,344 cases of workplace accidents, up from 234,370 cases in 2021. Meanwhile, during the Christmas and New Year (Nataru) holiday period in 2022, there was an 11 percent increase in traffic accidents compared to the Nataru holiday in 2019 before the Covid 19 pandemic.

One member of the state-owned pharmaceutical holding company, PT Phapros Tbk, sees a high demand for bone and teeth implant surgeries resulting from accidents. This year, the publicly traded company with the stock code PEHA will launch bone and teeth medical devices in the form of a bone filler, a collaboration with Airlangga University and dr. Soetomo Hospital, Surabaya.

Phapros CEO, Hadi Kardoko, said that the bone and teeth medical device market is significant in Indonesia, making it part of the company's 2023 production planning. As a state-owned company oriented towards public needs, they focus on research-based product innovation that meets community needs. According to him, the need for bone filler is not only for victims of bone and teeth fractures due to accidents, but also for the elderly who require joint reconstruction such as hip and knee replacement.

"Many factors cause damage to bones and teeth. Besides accidents, there are also severe illnesses such as tumors and osteoporosis, which are the main causes of bone fractures. Here, Phapros is trying to introduce synthetic materials for implants that can replace lost bone parts," he said in Jakarta (26/1).

He added that research downstream was conducted through technology transfer processes at Phapros' production facilities.

"Our target by the end of 2023 is to market this medical device. Moreover, this is the first domestically made bone filler, while the existing competitor products are still imports."

Similarly, Asnan Furinto, a Strategic Marketing observer from BINUS Business School, stated that public awareness, particularly among accident victims or their families, about the need for bone implants is quite high. They want to live normally again after experiencing events that affect their physical condition.

"Locally made bone filler products to assist with implantation have a great potential to have a large market share in Indonesia, as most of the products currently on the market are imports. This is in line with the government's policy to use local products, especially in the healthcare industry," he explained.

Traffic and workplace accidents generally result in broken bones and teeth in victims. To restore their joints to normal, medical devices are needed to aid in the recovery process.

"So, Phapros sees the bone and teeth medical devices segment as a 'hidden gem' that will become very important in the future, and they are seizing this future opportunity wisely."

According to the Deputy Dean of BINUS Business School, this dental and bone medical equipment segment can become a new pillar of future growth for Phapros. This is part of the research downstreaming as well as the expansion of Phapros' portfolio, which can add to their product completeness.

The Indonesian Medical Equipment Manufacturers Association (ASPAkI) stated that the medical equipment market in Indonesia is very promising. The number can reach US$2.2 million per year with potential numbers spread across around 3,000 hospitals as well as 9,000 private health centers and clinics throughout Indonesia. In the ASEAN region, the medical equipment market is also expected to grow rapidly after the pandemic.

"This rapid growth certainly reflects a rapidly expanding market size, one of which is certainly triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic and also the result of digital transformation over the last five years. Therefore, Indonesia has the opportunity to become a supplier of healthcare equipment to ASEAN countries through healthcare system transformation, digitalization penetration, and biotechnology. Historically, Indonesia has long been able to produce internationally standardized medical equipment and export them to the global market."

According to data from the Ministry of Health, from 2015 to 2021, the number of companies producing medical equipment increased from 193 to 891 companies. In the last five years, the domestic medical device industry has grown by 361.66%.

"The market potential is one of the important indicators for investors in determining whether they will buy shares of a company. Therefore, if investors believe that the company has a market that will grow in the future, even if currently the market size may not be large, then the value of the company's shares will rise," he concluded.