Changing customer perception towards locally manufactured neonatal and infant care devices including Incubators, Radiant Warmers, Phototherapy Units and Fetal Monitors

1. “Indian medical device brands have undergone a fair bit of transformation. They have all the necessary certificates
and feature-wise they are very “loaded”. If the big companies cannot bring down prices, somebody else will. Unless
it’s a life saving device or a capital intensive equipment, hospitals like mine will be fine using local devices”- Owner,
Small Hospital (<30 beds), Tier II Town, India
NICU Devices in India– Is Customer Perception of Locally Manufactured
Medical Devices Changing?
Once controlled by the Big-2 global firms, the Indian
NICU devices market is now giving way to a more
fragmented scenario favoring the local manufacturers.
EMeRG’s research across major tier 2/3 towns in India
indicates a growing preference for Indian brands in
this product category. While price sensitivity plays a
major role in this shift, Indian brands have
demonstrated marked improvement in terms of
overall reliability and after-sales support. Increasing
demand for Indian radiant warmers, phototherapy
units and fetal monitors in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka,
Nepal, Pakistan, UAE and certain African nations
indicates a paradigm shift in customer perception.
Cost Same-day service support
Repairable parts Training
Warranty Parts and Accessories Modular
Long shelf life Easy to clean
What is driving the positive perception?
 Assurance of prompt service
 Largely repairable parts that need not be purchased
each time
 Motivated sales force with firm belief in the product
quality
 Minute practical innovations / differentiation
(lightweight units for transport; washable mattresses /
sheets within the warmer units; modular units etc.)
 Ease of training limited staff
 Less than satisfactory prior experience with
international brands
Sentiment Cloud – Happy User
Customer Perception Insight
April, 2015
EMeRG’s word clouds are a result of a mix of written and spoken
text analysis to identify key topics of interest for further analysis.
NICU Devices – Radiant Warmers, Incubators, Fetal Monitors,
Phototherapy Units
Quality of Indian
brands is “as
good as” MNCs
32%
Will Never
Consider Indian
brands
16%
Will definitely consider
Indian brands
78%
“Not-
sure”
6%
Perception of Hospitals and Nursing Homes in Tier 2/3
Towns towards Indian manufacturers of NICU devices*
Indian brands are more reliable
with their service support
56%
*Percentages will not add up to 100% as these are responses to multiple and varied sets of questions

2. Largest Addressable Markets lie in Small-Medium Hospitals and
Nursing Homes
The highest demand for basic cost-effective
NICU devices lies in the small and medium
hospitals as well as the fast growing nursing
homes (>42,000) across tier 2/3 towns in
India. Poor differentiation between various
brands makes price and after-sales service
the main purchase decision parameters.
EMeRG anticipates that with the local
manufacturers expanding their sales and
support to interiors of India, the demand for
such devices will increase in Andhra Pradesh,
Maharashtra and Orissa in 2015 (apart from
the states highlighted in the map). The myth
about small hospitals and nursing homes
being the only target customer segments for
local manufacturers has been busted.
Several large public and private
multispecialty hospitals are opting for low-
cost NICU devices from Indian
manufacturers.
NICU Device Makers – Verbatim Snapshots
“We tell all customers – if you have
money, go for international brands.
But if you want cost-effective devices
for your NICU, give Indian brands a
chance. The best thing about all
Indian brands is – they will give you
24x7 support. There will always be
someone in the city to come and fix
your system in 24 hours if something
goes wrong. International brands
won’t do that.” – General Manager,
Indian NICU device manufacturer
“They (hospitals in tier 2/3 towns) prefer
us…we are the cheapest and more flexible
than big companies. If hospitals want to buy
only the controller panel and not the whole
warmer set, we allow that and reduce price
by INR7-9K.” – Sales Manager, Indian NICU
Device Manufacturer
“We started with a tube light based unit and
now make LED based systems. We are taking
small steps at a time and gaining access… ” –
MD, Indian NICU Device Manufacturer
“We try to focus only on 3-4
states…we keep 2 engineers
mobile and always ready to
reach anywhere in these
states as soon as there is a
breakdown call. Once we own
our customer’s trust, we then
look to expand to other states
with similar model and have
some dealers. After-sales is
the key to win
customers…there can be no
two-ways about it” – Sales
Manager, Indian NICU Device
Manufacturer
Source: EMeRG Analysis
States in India with highest
demand for Local-made NICU
Devices, 2014

3. Hospitals and Nursing Homes – Verbatim Snapshots
“I am really fond of some of the major international
brands. But their service support isn’t proactive. I can’t
have a good branded machine which is down and shift
my patient to another hospital after waiting for a whole
day for the service engineer. The local brands will
usually send someone within 24 hours” – In-charge,
Neonatal Ward, 80-bed hospital, Tier 2 town, India
“Indian manufacturers are a lot more trustworthy now. NICU
devices by nature are such that they will break down frequently.
It’s the same whether it is XXX, YYY (international brands) or a
locally manufactured one. So the main differentiator becomes
quick service. If they don’t send someone quickly, we can even call
their top management and they will definitely respond. It’s easier
to trust them in towns like ours…” Owner, Nursing home – Tier 3
town, India
With a population growth rate of over 1.58%, India’s NICU devices market will continue to soar high in the
coming years. Also with the growth of IVF procedures, the number of low-weight births will increase
leading to the need for incubators and phototherapy units. With infant mortality being 50% higher in rural
areas as compared to urban India, penetration of neonatal devices will be driven primarily by low-cost
innovations. However, creation of value-segment devices alone may not suffice. Manufacturers will have
to ensure a lean after-sales support model that is exhaustive yet cost-effective for the customers. Except
for large corporate chains, multispecialty hospitals and high-end delivery centers, the future of NICU
devices in India lies in low-cost development and dissemination.
Indian NICU Device Manufacturers – Quick Facts
Indian Manufacturers: Winning Strategies
 Keeping a low-cost base: While a limited number of
manufacturers have been collaborating with key academic
research institutes and foreign entities, others are utilizing frugal
reverse engineering techniques. A few companies also source
various parts and components (occasionally the entire device) from
Chinese manufacturers and assemble and label them in India
 Practical and India-relevant innovations: From tiny transport
incubator modules for harsh winter months to non-contact
neonate bilirubin counters; washable and urine absorbing sheets in
radiant warmers to CPAP integrated modules, incremental
innovations relevant to Indian settings are being made
 Small yet effective service footprint: With limited “feet-on-
street”, many Indian firms are looking to focus on a limited number
of states / towns while ensuring service support within 24 hours.
Some are collaborating with local dealers and independent
consortiums of biomedical engineers
Noteworthy Indian NICU Device
Suppliers
While Phoenix is the leader in this
category, some key Indian suppliers
include:
 SS Technomed
 Medichem Electronics
 AVI Healthcare
 Neonest Medical Systems
 Zeal Medical
 Erkadi Systems
 Neokraft Medical
 Orange Medical
 Amigo Medical Systems

4. For in-depth customer insights, custom research needs, and installed base surveys for your Medical
device portfolio, please visit www.emerg-inc.com or write to us at letsspeak@emerg-inc.com.
EMeRG offers the FIRST OF ITS KIND ethnography based CUSTOMER CENTRIC reports for emerging
markets. Each syndicated VOC (voice of customer) report includes:
 Needs-based customer segmentation
 Ethnography based Need-gap analysis
 Challenges and motivators for various user types
 Purchase process mapping
 Medical device servicing and after-sales issues
 Customer perception for procedures, therapies and corresponding product categories
 Design recommendations based on ethnographic studies
 Value drivers by customer / hospital type
 Market opportunity by customer / hospital type
© 2015.ETHNOGRAPHIC MEDICAL RESEARCH PVT.LTD. All rights reserved.
www.emerg-inc.com
Ask EMeRG
The above snapshot is an excerpt from our larger syndicated analysis on
the voice of customer report for NICU Devices in India. Our in-depth
primary research and ethnography based analysis will help you answer a
multitude of questions.
 What is the overall addressable market for NICU Devices in India?
 What are the key need-gaps for hospitals and nursing homes in Tier 2/3 towns
for neonatal wards?
 Who are the primary decision makers for NICU Devices in India?
 What is user’s perception for MNC vs. local brands in India?
 What is the needs-based customer segmentation for NICU Devices India?
?