Telangana well placed to tap opportunities in 3D printing of medical devices and implants: KTR

Hyderabad: India by focusing on 3D printing medical technologies, can benefit from the immense demand. Within the country, Telangana, which has now set up the National Centre for Additive Manufacturing (NCAM), is well placed to tap the emerging opportunities in this segment, Industries and IT Minister KT Rama Rao, said on Friday. Inaugurating the ‘National […]

Hyderabad: India by focusing on 3D printing medical technologies, can benefit from the immense demand. Within the country, Telangana, which has now set up the National Centre for Additive Manufacturing (NCAM), is well placed to tap the emerging opportunities in this segment, Industries and IT Minister KT Rama Rao, said on Friday.

Inaugurating the ‘National Conference on 3D Printing in Medical Devices and Implants’ here, he said the market for the 3D printed medical devices and implants is likely to touch $ 7.1 billion in five years from the current $ 1.7 billion as it was growing at a compound annual growth rate of over 22 per cent.

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Telangana has a distinct advantage since it has launched the NCAM which will work to identify the new trends and also partners to work on them. While NCAM is a new addition in the State, Telangana is already home to robust innovation ecosystem consisting of ecosystem enablers like the T-Hub, TSIC, WeHub, RICH, TASK, T-Work, the Emerging Technologies Wing and IMAGE Centre of Excellence.

There are more than 1,500 startups in the city that have worked with these enablers and have raised more than 1,800 crore in funding, the Minister said.

T-Works, which is a large proto-typing facility, is already spearheading the efforts with and without the use of 3D printing. During Covid, T-works had developed mechanical ventilator in collaboration with various partners. T-Works’ upcoming facility of 78,000 sqft will be the nation’s largest proto-typing facility and will have a dedicated laboratory for 3D printing, Rama Rao said.

The new NCAM, set up at Osmania University campus, will identify new priorities, trends and partners to work on them. The Telangana government signed about 20 MoUs on Friday with leading organisations in additive manufacturing technology from India and abroad such as EOS GmbH, Markforged, Wipro 3D, Redington Group, Intech Additive, Imaginarium, NIT Warangal, Deakin University Australia and more. These partnerships will help in fulfilling NCAM’s objective of promoting adoption of additive manufacturing (AM) in India and enabling indigenisation and commercialisation of AM parts, components, materials and creating disruptions in the sector in India.

The 3D printing or additive manufacturing has allowed implant manufacturers to create complex geometries that copy the shape and function of natural bone and to produce these items on an accelerated timeline. The technology also offers new ways to work with common implant materials and polymers. Australian researchers have approved a process for 3D printing of stents to retain their shape. The material opens up new possibilities to the healthcare sector as it is beneficial to both patient and doctor, he said.

Specific demand in orthopedics and dental surgeries, enhanced productivity coupled with accuracy and precision are the factors leading to the growth of 3D printed device and implants. However, adoption of this technology is mostly limited to the US and European markets. The USFDA has reviewed more than 100 medical devices made using technology and 3D printers. In addition, the USFDA has also approved 3D printed titanium implant devices.

ndia has a huge opportunity to be a dominant player in this segment and gain a lion’s share based on the human capital available here, Rama Rao said.The new technologies save the pharma industry millions of dollars in cost, resources and wastage, he said.

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