microTEC Südwest

MedicalMountains –a strong network for a successful future

Baden-Württemberg is one of the leading locations in the medical technology sector. Its attractiveness reaches far beyond the country’s borders. The district of Tuttlingen alone counts a concentration of more than 400 enterprises of the sector. For this reason, the region is also known as the “World Centre of Medical Technology”. For many years, tradition and innovation have gone global from here.

Nonetheless the strongly regulated market and an intensely competitive environment raise permanent challenges for the sector. That is why a well-focused management of continuous advancement and an innovative network are an indispensable basis for long-term global success.

Success factor innovation –ideas that build bridges to the future

We are MedicalMountains: A cluster initiative for the medtech industry based in the heart of the World Centre of Medical Technology.

Shareholders of the MedicalMountains GmbH are the Schwarzwald-Baar-Heuberg Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Tuttlingen District, the NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute at the University of Tübingen, the Surgical Mechanics Guild Baden-Württemberg, the Hahn Schickard Society for Applied Research, the Chamber of Crafts Constance and the city of Tuttlingen.

Our particular interest is to strengthen innovative capacity and long-term competitiveness, both for single companies as well as for the entire medical technology business cluster.

For this purpose we actively represent the interests of medtech enterprises on a political level, encourage innovation and technology transfer by directing work groups or R&D projects, organise training seminars and other informative events, and provide support for other service topics such as internationalisation or common marketing activities, amongst others.

MedicalMountains – more than just a loose affiliation of companies

The companies of the cluster consist of more than 90% small businesses and mid-sized companies, making the importance of the network even more crucial now than ever before. The medical sector is experiencing constant change and increasing competition worldwide. For companies of any size, collaboration and exchange with regional partners brings immense knowledge and a lead in technology – as well as enhancing the appreciation of the location for the region itself. MedicalMountains brings order to this natural, mutual structure. Future-oriented, prudent management is the basis for effective, constructive and farsighted developments in medical technology.

In collaboration with a growing network of industry, research institutions and government policies, the cluster initiative MedicalMountains actively represents the interests of medtech enterprises. The focus of the cluster initiative is to promote growth, strengthen competitive advantages, and increase the sector’s international visibility even further. For this purpose MedicalMountains provides a platform for regular dialogue and technology transfer. It brings forward innovation by initiating directed project works, promotes qualification of specialised staff, and advises on subsidies or the opening up of new foreign markets. Our way of working is based on a close collaboration with the companies of our network.

For more information: Yvonne Glienke CEO MedicalMountains GmbH

Katharinenstrasse 2 78532 Tuttlingen +49-7461-9697-211 glienke@medicalmountains.de → www.medicalmountains.de

Cluster of excellence –Medical Valley EMN

The Medical Valley European Metropolitan Region Nuremberg (EMN) Association is an internationally leading innovation ecosystem in the area of healthcare management.

Highly specialised research institutions, international leaders, and at the same time many growing companies: all of them are active here. They cooperate closely with world-renowned health research institutions in order to jointly find solutions for the challenges of health care today and tomorrow.

This extraordinary concentration of players, combined with the international market and competitive position of individual actors, plus the unique infrastructures and services, all provide the conditions that allow ideas to be turned into products, processes, and services more quickly.

The Medical Valley European Metropolitan Region Nuremberg (EMN) Association currently has 230 members from business, science, healthcare, networks, and politics and has been contributing to the further development, coordination, and marketing of this eco system since 2007.

The nationally and internationally outstanding position of this economically strong region was additionally strengthened in January 2010 when it was designated a “National Top Cluster” for medical technology by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

In April 2017, Medical Valley, in cooperation with the Zollhof Tech Incubator and the Health Hackers, was named one of twelve national “Digital Hubs” by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy – the only one that focuses exclusively on health.

Furthermore, Medical Valley EMN is a member of the consortium of EITHealth, a consolidation of European partners, that develops – within the scope of Horizon 2020 – new solutions related to the topics “Promote Healthy Living”, “Support Active Ageing”, and “Improve Healthcare”. With a budget of up to €80m p.a. for the next 7 to 15 years EIT Health is currently one of the largest health research programmes worldwide.

In 2019 the dmac – Digital Health Application Center was founded in Bamberg. dmac is another essential hub in the Medical Valley eco system and offers support and expertise for companies on their way to the digital medicine of today and tomorrow.

In 2021, with the founding of the Institute for Healthcare Robotics and Automation, short IFOHRA, another component of the Medical Valley Center Bamberg followed. IFOHRA accompanies hospitals and other healthcare providers in the technological transformation process, especially in the implementation of automation and robotics solutions. IFOHRA also supports manufacturers of innovative automation solutions in gaining access to the German healthcare market.

Contact the cluster for more information:

For more information: Medical Valley EMN e.V Jörg Trinkwalter Phone +49-9131-91617-47 joerg.trinkwalter@medical-valley-emn.de → www.medical-valley-emn.de