# Establishments in the medical technology industry A map of a former edition of the Atlas of Switzerland, the national atlas published by ETH Zurich. It opens only in the desktop atlas (version 4) for Windows and macOS, not in the web atlas; see the links below. - Map: https://atlasderschweiz.ch/en/theme/establishments-in-the-medical-technology-industry/ - Short title: Medical technology industry: establishments - Map id: 814 - Categories: Economy and Energy › Industry › Medical technology - Keywords: Economy, Industry, Labour, Labour force - Published: 2020-11-04 - Last revised: 2022-02-10 - Content language: English - Other languages: [Deutsch](https://atlasderschweiz.ch/de/thema/arbeitsstaetten-in-der-medizintechnikindustrie.md), [Français](https://atlasderschweiz.ch/fr/theme/etablissements-dans-lindustrie-de-la-technologie-medicale.md), [Italiano](https://atlasderschweiz.ch/it/tema/unita-locali-nellindustria-della-tecnologia-medica.md) ## Description Medical technology or “medtech” covers a wide range of healthcare products and is used to treat human diseases and ailments. Generally speaking, medical technology covers medical devices, information technology and biotechnologies as well as healthcare services. Medical products range from plasters and bandages to syringes and cannulas and right up to implants and complex technical medical devices. These kinds of technologies should improve the quality of healthcare through earlier diagnosis, less invasive treatment options and shorter hospital stays and rehabilitation times, and this ultimately has a positive impact on quality of life. *History* The advanced civilisation in Egypt (circa 1700 B.C.) already had extensive knowledge and instructions for *wound healing and treatment*. Milestones in the history of wound treatment were set by Ignaz Semmelweis (around 1850) and the Scottish doctor Sir Joseph Lister, the founder of antiseptic medicine (1867), and Viktor von Bruns who invented absorbent cotton wool (around 1870). Modern wound care started in the 1960s and is based on moist wound treatment with films. Since 2000, there has been a new procedure for treating skin defects associated with chronic wounds and extremely severe burn injuries – “tissue engineering”. In addition, many different treatment techniques have been developed for various organs (e.g. cataract operations on eyes, stents for blood vessels) and the musculoskeletal system (e.g. artificial joint replacement, hand and leg prostheses). In the history of *surgical instruments*, Hippocrates is considered the founder of classical surgery. Even back then, around 2,500 years ago, more than 200 different instruments were involved in an operation. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the manufacture of instruments (syringes, cannulas, suture material, catheters and implants) from steel, glass and plastic began on a large scale. The emergence of hospitals is linked to the development of numerous new *examination and surgical methods*, such as the stethoscope (Théophile Laennec, 1819), the X-ray (Conrad Röntgen, 1895), modern anaesthesia technology (Otto Roth and Bernhard Dräger, 1903), the electrocardiogram (Willem Einthoven, 1906), the electroencephalogram (Hans Berger, 1924) or the electron microscope (Ernst Ruska, 1931). The development of medical technology in the last decades of the 20th century was extremely dynamic. Single-use plastic products, artificial joint replacement, pacemaker technologies or minimally invasive procedures allow for a high standard in technical medical care. The rate of progress is set to become faster still thanks to the emergence of a wide range of new technologies in medicine, such as tissue engineering, the development of new “intelligent” materials, the integration of telemedical applications in medical technology treatment methods, minimally invasive surgical techniques and nanotechnology. *The Swiss medical technology industry* The Swiss medtech sector comprises around 1,400 companies that can be divided into four categories – manufacturers, distributors, suppliers & subcontractors and service providers. A quarter of companies manufacture their own products, and these include startups. The biggest category is made up of suppliers, at one third of all companies. In 2017, the Swiss medtech sector employed around 58,500 employees, representing 1.1% of all Swiss employees. In comparison to other sectors, the medical technology industry has been associated with above-average job creation. From 2015 to 2017, the number of employees rose by 4,000. The medtech sector is primarily made up of SMEs – 93% of companies employ fewer than 250 employees and 80% employ fewer than 50 employees. Micro-companies with fewer than 10 employees make up the largest group. The large companies with more than 250 employees are mainly manufacturers. Most Swiss manufacturers produce hospital equipment and disposable items. Other areas of application that are well represented in Switzerland are rehabilitation, prosthetics, orthotics and everyday aids as well as in vitro diagnostics and laboratory equipment, orthopaedics and dentistry, while areas which are less represented include electronic and mobile health and software, ears/nose/throat and wound treatment. The 1,400 companies (manufacturers, suppliers, service providers as well as retailers and distributors) generated sales of CHF 15.8 billion in 2017, which corresponds to 2.3% of the Swiss gross domestic product. In total, a volume of CHF 11.3 billion was exported, with the U.S. and Germany being the most important export destinations – a value share of 5.1% of all Swiss exports. The trade balance surplus in the medtech sector amounted to CHF 5.9 billion; this is 13.5% of the entire Swiss trade balance surplus. Swiss medtech companies often manufacture products for the global market but continue to have their production sites in Switzerland. With its high concentration of manufacturers as well as industry specialist suppliers and service providers, Switzerland is a unique medtech cluster. ## Sources - BVMed (2004): Geschichte und Trends der Medizintechnologie. Berlin - SMTI (2018): Die Schweizer Medizintechnikindustrie 2018. Branchenstudie. Swiss Medtech ## Data sources - Atlas der Schweiz: Administrative Einheiten 1:1 Mio. (Gemeinden, Bezirke, Kantone) - Atlas of Switzerland: [Administrative Einheiten 1:500.000 (Gemeinden, Bezirke, Kantone)](http://www.atlasderschweiz.ch/) - ETH Zurich: [Atlas of Switzerland](https://www.atlasderschweiz.ch/) - FSO (2020): [Statistik der Unternehmensstruktur](https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/industrie-dienstleistungen/erhebungen/statent.html) - swisstopo [J160089] (2010): [Gemeindegrenzen GG25](https://shop.swisstopo.admin.ch/de/products/landscape/boundaries3D) - swisstopo [J160089] (2010): [Landeskarte 1:500.000](https://shop.swisstopo.admin.ch/de/products/maps/national/lk500) ## Data owners - [Atlas of Switzerland (AoS)](http://www.atlasderschweiz.ch/) - [Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO)](https://www.bfs.admin.ch/) - [Swiss Federal Office of Topography (swisstopo)](http://www.swisstopo.admin.ch/) ## Citation The terms of use ask to name the Atlas of Switzerland and the data owners, and to keep the source references in exports, screenshots and embeds. Cite the map as: > Atlas of Switzerland (2022): Establishments in the medical technology industry. ETH Zürich. Map data © AoS, FSO, swisstopo. https://atlasderschweiz.ch/en/theme/establishments-in-the-medical-technology-industry/ ## Links - Map page, with the description and sources and a button that opens the map in the desktop atlas: https://atlasderschweiz.ch/en/theme/establishments-in-the-medical-technology-industry/ - Open the map in the desktop atlas (version 4), where it is installed: adsglobe://map/814 - Download of the desktop atlas (version 4) for Windows and macOS: https://atlasderschweiz.ch/en/ads4-download/ ## Related maps - [Major industrial, trading and service companies](https://atlasderschweiz.ch/en/theme/major-industrial-trading-and-service-companies.md) (id 526, former edition, desktop atlas only) For the use and citation of maps and data, see the [terms of use](https://atlasderschweiz.ch/en/terms-of-use/).