Industry Report

German Medtech Market: More than 250,000 jobs

Germany is the third biggest market for medical technologies in the world. The total revenue of the manufacturing medical technology companies (considered are those with more than 20 employees) in Germany was more than 36 billion euros in 2021, according to the official economic statistics. The export rate was at around 66 percent. The German MedTech market is about twice as large as the French and three times as large as the British or Italian market. The medical technology industry employs more than 250,000 people in Germany.

The medical technology sector is an important part of the healthcare industry.
  • Medtech companies employ over 250,000 people in Germany.
  • Our industry is strongly characterized by small and medium-sized enterprises. 93 percent of medtech companies employ fewer than 250 people.
  • And the industry is an important driver of medical progress. On average, medtech companies invest around 9 percent of their sales in research and development.
  • German medical technology is very successful on the global market. The export ratio was around 66 percent in 2021. Sales are more than 36 billion euros.

What is the current situation in the medical technology sector in the second Corona year?

Answers to this question are provided by the results of our fall survey. Of 240 BVMed member companies, 120 participated, including primarily the larger medical device manufacturers from Germany and the U.S., as well as medical aid service providers and homecare providers.

According to the results of the autumn survey conducted by BVMed, the sales trend in the medtech sector shows a slight recovery, with a forecast increase of 3.3 percent compared to the previous year. However, profits in the medtech sector will decline overall in 2022 due to dramatic cost increases in transport, raw material and energy prices, as well as the additional regulatory workload resulting from the EU Medical Device Regulation (MDR). Nevertheless, companies are creating new jobs and investing in production sites.

The cost increases and bureaucratic obstacles caused by the MDR are also leading to a decline in the industry's innovation momentum. The medtech industry's innovation climate index is at an all-time low of 3.6 on a scale of ten. This highlights the dramatic nature of the challenges facing the SME-dominated medtech sector in Germany.

With an increase of 3.5 percent, the expected global sales development is only slightly better than the domestic development. In the years before the COVID pandemic, the international growth of the companies was always significantly higher than the domestic result.

However, due to dramatic cost increases, company profits will decline significantly. Only 11 percent of medtech companies expect profit increases this year. 62 percent expect the profit situation to deteriorate. Despite the considerable pressure on the industry, more than a quarter of the companies are increasing their investments in Germany as a production location this year. For just under half, the level of investment will remain unchanged. Only 18 percent of the BVMed companies surveyed say they will be able to increase investments in research.

The medtech companies surveyed cite Germany's well-trained specialists and good infrastructure as its main strengths as a business location. However, the values are more than 10 percentage points lower than in the previous year due to the effects of the crisis with rising costs and the noticeable shortage of skilled workers.

In terms of the biggest obstacles to company development in German medical technology, dramatic cost increases have been added to the previously dominant MDR issues in 2022. Other factors include the shortage of skilled workers and uncertainties among suppliers and supply chains. However, MDR barriers remain a dominant issue. For example, 68 percent of BVMed companies surveyed see rising costs and tied-up resources due to the MDR as a major obstacle to their future development. Another factor is the halt to innovation caused by the MDR.

On a scale of 0 to 10, the companies rate the innovation climate for medical technology in Germany at an average of only 3.6. This is the absolute lowest value since BVMed has surveyed the index in 2012 and demonstrates the dramatic nature of the challenges facing the medtech sector, which is dominated by SMEs. Companies rate cardiology and oncology as the most innovative research areas.

Despite the multiple crises and dramatically rising costs, the medtech industry in Germany continues to create additional jobs. 40 percent of the companies participating in the BVMed Autumn Survey 2022 are increasing the number of employees compared to the previous year, while 43 percent are keeping the number of positions stable. The career prospects for specialists in the medtech industry remain excellent. 92 percent of the companies consider the job prospects to be unchanged or better. They are looking primarily for engineers, natural scientists, and medical technicians. Broken down by area, medtech companies are looking for personnel primarily in sales, production, regulatory affairs, and quality management. The effects of the shortage of skilled workers are also strongly felt in medical technology. For example, 53 percent of companies state that they are having problems filling vacancies in sales.

Detailed information on BVMed's annual press conference and the fall survey on the state of the medical technology industry is available at www.bvmed.de/medienseminar2022 (in German language)
Körper entdecken
Alle Körperregionen
Standorte
Entdecken
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Berlin Brandenburg Sachsen-Anhalt Sachsen Thüringen Bayern Hessen Baden-Württemberg Saarland Rheinland-Pfalz Nordrhein-Westfalen Bremen Niedersachsen Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein background-image
Alle Standorte

©1999 - 2024 BVMed e.V., Berlin – Portal für Medizintechnik