AN innovative international med-tech exchange will see six local startups and six business students from Memorial University explore opportunities in the UK Innovation Corridor this semester.

Led by Bounce Health Innovation and Memorial’s Faculty of Business Administration, and with financial support from Mitacs Canada, the International Med-Tech Innovation Exchange will cultivate the bidirectional exchange of ideas, connections and opportunities for med-tech startups.

Health-sector innovation

“COVID-19 has been a tremendous global challenge, but one silver lining is the level of innovation we are seeing in the health sector,” said Dr. Chandra Kavanagh, director of Bounce Health Innovation. “The pandemic revealed gaps and flaws in medical systems both here in Canada and around the world, and it has forced health-care systems to explore technology in ways they haven’t before. The result has been incredible opportunities for innovators and entrepreneurs to step in and solve some of these issues with technology startups.”

The aim of the trip, she adds, is to increase the number of med-tech entrepreneurs engaging with markets in the UK and to encourage U.K. companies to explore markets in Newfoundland and Labrador.

After undergoing training prior to the mission, the participating companies — Amp Health, Granville Biomedical, JVPLabs, Luxsonic Technologies, PolyUnity and PragmaClin — will connect with potential partners, funders and clients in the U.K. Innovation Corridor, using Memorial’s Harlow Campus as a base.

The campus is located in Old Harlow, midway between London and Cambridge, and centrally located within the corridor, which is the UK’s fastest growing innovation space.

“This is an incredible opportunity to learn about the U.K. marketplace, specifically how med-tech is sourced, trailed and procured,” said Dr. Stephen Ryan (B.Sc.’12, MD’18), co-founder of PolyUnity, which uses 3D printing to provide health-care solutions. “We’re ready to scale, and finding strategic partnership through this Harlow mission can accelerate our market presence in the U.K. I’m also really looking forward to learning more about the amazing companies in our travelling cohort, and how we can work as a team of entrepreneurs to strengthen the tech sector here in Newfoundland and Labrador.”