Intuitive Medical's largest Asia Pacific headquarters base opened in Shanghai, focusing on domestically produced da Vinci surgical robots
On June 12, the Intuitive Medical Fosun Headquarters Industrial Base was officially opened in Shanghai Zhangjiang International Medical Park. The total investment of the base project is about 700 million yuan, and it is the largest integrated R&D, production and training base of Intuitive Medical in the Asia-Pacific region.
Intuitive Fosun Medical Device Technology Co., Ltd. was jointly invested by Intuitive Medical and Fosun Pharma in 2017. In October last year, the domestically produced da Vinci surgical system was approved for marketing, and the da Vinci surgical robot was officially localized. In the initial stage of the new headquarters base, the production of some accessories of the da Vinci surgical robot and the Ion bronchial navigation operation control system will be focused.
As important as technology and equipment is the accompanying skills training. Pan Xiaofeng, CEO of Intuitive Fosun, said that training was an obstacle to the development of the da Vinci surgical robot in the past, and the completion of the headquarters base will become the biggest boost in the future.
In 2006, the da Vinci surgical robot entered the Chinese market, opening a new chapter in the medical application of surgical robots in my country. Initially, domestic doctors who wanted to learn to use the machine had to go abroad for training. It was not until October 2021 that the da Vinci Innovation Center, equipped with 6 da Vinci surgical robots, was put into operation. Since then, domestic doctors have been able to complete relevant skills training in Shanghai, and more than 3,000 people have been trained so far.
In 2024, with the completion of the headquarters industrial base, Intuitive Fosun ushered in a new innovation center. The new innovation center building has five floors with a total area of about 8,000 square meters. It is the largest training center of Intuitive Medical in the Asia-Pacific region. At the same time, with the approval of the domestic da Vinci surgical system in October last year, the 10 da Vinci surgical robots equipped in the new innovation center are all domestically produced.
The new innovation building includes the da Vinci surgical floor and the Ion system surgical floor, with an annual training capacity of more than 1,000 groups, and can provide da Vinci and Ion system training and surgical training for more than 4,000 medical professionals each year. In addition, the new center will also support the company's internal training, innovative research and development of domestic new products and therapies, registration verification and other projects, accelerating the company's local innovation capabilities.
Dave Rosa, Global President of Intuitive Healthcare and Chairman of Intuitive Fosun, said: "The opening of the Intuitive Fosun Headquarters Industrial Base is a reflection of Intuitive Healthcare's commitment to investment and development in China. At the same time, Intuitive Healthcare's investment in Shanghai has achieved remarkable results, thanks to the favorable policies and business environment here. In the future, the Intuitive Fosun Headquarters Industrial Base will expand its cooperation with medical service institutions and promote the accessibility of medical resources by adopting high-quality innovative solutions."
"Shanghai is a bridgehead for innovation and R&D in China. On the one hand, it has a complete innovation ecosystem, and on the other hand, it has a huge advantage in talent gathering." Wu Yifang, Chairman of Fosun Pharma, said that the establishment and development of Intuitive Fosun relied on Shanghai's open and international innovation atmosphere and good business environment to achieve the localized R&D and production of the da Vinci surgical robot. "Whether it is us or our partners, we have always had a consensus - to develop well in Shanghai and seize the opportunities brought to us by Shanghai's development."
