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Cranfield, UK 2nd October 2024 – Written by Alfie Edwards
In recent weeks, Kelly Patrick and I have spent time scoping for a new report to Signify Research, Advanced Life Support Solutions – World – 2025. As part of the scoping process, we travelled to The Emergency Services Show (ESS) at the NEC in Birmingham. This gave us the opportunity to meet with several major vendors in the market to discuss our initial scope, grow product knowledge, and gain insights into vendors opinion on the current market developments. This insight provides an overview of the highlights and discusses the main takeaways from the event.
The ALS market is undergoing a period of change
The Advanced Life Support (ALS) market has seen heavy dominance in previous years, with several vendors commenting on the scale of ZOLL, Stryker and Philips’ grip. Even though the main vendors hold a large proportion of the Advanced Life Support market, new up-coming vendors pose a threat with the launch of competitively equipped defibrillators. Competition is becoming fierce with the likes of Mindray and Nihon Kohden offering innovative solutions to gain market share. Although the presence of these vendors in the defibrillator market is behind that of their products in the ventilator and patient monitor markets, there is a clear path of further development. Mindray was exhibiting its newest addition to its BeneHeart portfolio, its D60, which combines a high-level monitor defibrillator with Point-of-Care ultrasound to enable accurate and confident decision-making in trauma. It claimed to be the first to receive MDR approval for such a solution.
Innovation drives a previously stagnant market
With user demands changing, innovation is a main driver of market evolution. From the integration of ultrasound into monitor defibrillators in Mindray and Philips products, to a traumatic brain injury dashboard in ZOLL’s series X, development in technology drives customer appeal and market growth. As the healthcare industry suffers from a workforce shortage, the need for products which can be used by lesser-trained individuals is growing. Notably, the range of defibrillators available from Corpuls are all either exclusively AEDs or have AED capability. This increases usability whilst reducing the chances of human error in patient care, by taking the action of the provision of defibrillation out of the caregivers’ hands. This was something Corpuls made clear was a feature introduced due to increased customer interest.
Data innovation was a common theme throughout the day. With the rise in demand for data integration into electronic health records (EHRs), the need to store and manage data captured by devices increases. Furthermore, data innovation also comes in the form of understanding the data. Many vendors discussed the integration of AI into devices to influence decisions. However, some noted ‘the lack of microchips limits innovation’ hindering the development of AI into devices. Not all vendors are open to the integration of AI into defibrillators, with some demonstrating high opposition to this AI movement. Questions also arose on the contextual aspect of AI. Humans are biological and not always predictable, which when combined with the short time in which a defibrillator has to act – how can the AI make a ‘truly informed’ decision with such little data?
Integration of several devices into one multifunctional device is something that is also becoming increasingly common in several vendors’ product lines. Monitor defibrillators on the market are increasing their functions to encapsulate additional monitoring parameters – and the number of features continues to grow! With most defibrillators now capable of monitoring ECG, SpO2, temperature, and non-invasive blood pressure, vendors are increasing the capability of monitors to capture more variables and store more patient data. As already mentioned, Mindray and Philips have integrated ultrasound into their devices, increasing usability at the point-of-care and ensuring efficiency in care. Another notable development includes most vendors now including up to 12-lead ECGs. I found myself questioning whether we will soon see most patient monitors and defibrillation devices combining into a single unit and if so, what consequences will there be on the respective markets? It will be interesting to see how the patient monitor market changes in the future.
Goodbye ‘fee-for-service’, welcome back ‘value-based’ care
With budgets under large strain, the move towards value-based care influences buyer decisions more than ever. There is the potential that larger players will see market share decline in the future, as smaller vendors compete in terms of price point and standard of software. However, it was made clear that pricing is not the only factor. Product size and weight plays a huge role in defibrillator choice. Some buyers are increasingly opting for higher priced defibrillators due to their portability and lighter weight. To circle back to the discussion, price of the product also comes into play with some vendors offering subscription-like services to reduce initial costs and take maintenance responsibility away from the user – a huge appeal to some. When reflecting on the event, it became clear that even though budget and overall cost of products heavily influences purchasing, brand names and product characteristics still play a huge role in swaying decisions. Following panic buying during the COVID pandemic and the acquisition of poor-quality equipment, many vendors expect to see a return to market growth in coming years, a rather unique reliance of buyer trust.
Will legislation change force development to go backwards?
There is uncertainty on whether the market is shifting from modular to integrated devices. Recent legislative changes have raised questions about whether a return to modular solutions might help address these new regulations. Discussions with vendors delved into market impacts of the potential introduction of a law requiring seatbelts in the back of ambulances in the UK, as well as the impacts of new EU legislation requiring defibrillators in all public buildings on AED demand. Corpuls, for example, anticipates increased demand for their C3 monitor defibrillator, which splits into separate modules, allowing for patient monitoring and control from a distance – an advantage given the expected changes in paramedic seating arrangements.
Nonetheless, the move back to modularity was not something all vendors agreed on with some believing the efficiency of multifunctional devices will maintain their demand.
It was raining… bullets…?
Moving away from all things defibrillators and advanced life support solutions, this show was also packed with other rather unique technologies! This included a robodog and bullet-proof umbrella. One might ask themselves, ‘why would I need a bullet proof umbrella?’ and the simple answer is – well, why not!
Related Research
Signify Research is currently in the scoping process of a new market intelligence report, Advanced Life Support Solutions – World – 2025. This report aims to offer segmentation by product type, by country, and by end user. This report will include a market forecast period of 2025 to 2029, with 2024 as the base year and 2023 as the historical year. If you are interested in participating in this research or learning more about the report, please email Alfie on alfie.edwards@signifyresearch.net.
About The Author
Alfie joined Signify Research in September 2024 as a Market Analyst within the Clinical Care team. Having graduated with a BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Southampton, Alfie gained an interest in bioscience business and bioinformatics. Away from the office, Alfie enjoys long dog walks, cooking, and listening to endless hours of Taylor Swift.
About the Clinical Care Team
The clinical care team provides market intelligence and detailed insights on the clinical care equipment and IT markets. Our areas of coverage include patient monitoring, diagnostic cardiology, infusion pumps, ventilators, anaesthesia devices, and high-acuity IT. Our reports provide a data-centric and global outlook of each market with granular country-level insights. Our research process blends primary data collected from in-depth interviews with healthcare professionals and technology vendors, to provide a balanced and objective view of the market.
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