Our leading medical device research and development infrastructures worldwide include more than 1,530 engineers. Around 67% of them hold Masters or Doctorate degrees.

To enhance our leading market position, we have made and will continue to make significant investments in R&D. In fact, we invest approximately 10% of net revenues every year. The generous investment in R&D promotes our prolific product families. Since 1992, we have launched over 60 products across our three primary business segments, most of which bear CE mark and 30 of which have acquired FDA approval. In addition to developing new products, our R&D teams and manufacturing departments work closely together to optimize manufacturing processes and develop commercially viable products. They incorporate regular feedback from our sales and marketing personnel, enabling us to introduce products tailored to end-user needs timely and cost-effectively. Furthermore, our China-based R&D and manufacturing operations provide us with a distinct competitive advantage in international markets by enabling us to leverage low-cost technical expertise, labor, raw materials and facilities.

In 2006, we opened a R&D center in Seattle, U.S.A., to focus on advanced medical device technologies. In 2008, we integrated New Jersey and Stockholm R&D centers into our global R&D network by the acquisition of Datascope patient monitoring business.