Medtech

Pierre-Yves Donzé is a professor in business history at the Graduate School of Economics, Osaka University, and a visiting professor at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland. His research focuses on the history of the global dynamics of industries (hospitals and medtech, watchmaking, fashion and luxury). He is a co-editor of Business History, and a member of the councils of the European Business History Association (EBHA) and of the Business History Society of Japan. His last books include Making Medicine a Business: X-ray Technology and the Transformation of the Japanese Medical System (1895–1945), Palgrave Macmillan, 2018, and The Business of Health: New Approaches to the Evolution of Health Systems in the World, Routledge, 2022 (co-edited with Paloma Fernández Pérez).

Introduction.- 1 The dynamics of the global medtech industry.- 2 Formation of medtech big business.- 3 The lasting competitive advantage of US firms.- 4 Japan: From electronics to medical technology.- 5 Germany: Between Siemens and specialized medtech firms.- 6 Orthopedics SMEs and pharmaceutical giants in Switzerland.- 7 The French medtech industry: A lack of international competitiveness.- 8 The rise of a new medtech giant: China.- Conclusion.