Image revamp for company in medical market

ONE of the last British-owned orthopaedic instrument manufacturers has launched a new corporate image and revealed plans to diversify the business into new product areas.

The company formerly known as Joint Replacement Instrumentation will now trade as JRI Orthopaedics under the leadership of new managing director Keith Jackson.

Mr Jackson told the Yorkshire Post: "We have been growing steadily but we felt, given the current economic climate and changing dynamics of the orthopaedic market, we need to do some things differently."

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Cosmetic changes include a new logo, but the most significant difference will be in the company's approach to innovation, said Mr Jackson, who took charge two months ago.

The company will launch new product ranges this year which will see JRI move beyond hip replacement instruments into high-technology devices for shoulders and knees.

JRI is well known in the medical device sector for its hip replacement implants, which are coated with hydroxyapatite, a material which forms a natural bond with the bone.

The technology, developed by founder Ronald Furlong, significantly extends the life span and effectiveness of the implant. JRI started trials for new shoulder replacement implants this month, based on technology it developed in partnership with Newcastle University.

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It will also be distributing innovative new products in the UK on behalf of other manufacturers.

The company manufactures its products at a 6m facility in Sheffield, which opened in 2007. It has been operating in Sheffield for much longer, as Mr Jackson explained.

"When we moved into manufacturing more than 30 years ago, the founder chose Sheffield because of its reputation. Sheffield has an international reputation for processing and machining specialist metals.

"We are well positioned in Sheffield. There is a cluster of medical device companies in Yorkshire and Humber, particularly orthopaedic companies around Sheffield, therefore the supply chain is very well developed. That's why we have invested heavily in the facility, which is state of the art.

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"It's no longer just a manufacturing facility. We now have research, product development, regulatory affairs and marketing. It's become the hub of JRI in the UK."

The company has a turnover of 17m and the majority of its "substantial" profits are donated to its owner, the Furlong Research Charitable Foundation.

Mr Jackson said: "The business model is quite unique, definitely in orthopaedics and probably in medical devices. The donations fund cutting edge research in the field of orthopeadics and medical research programmes for surgeons."

Asked if demographics favour the orthopaedic sector, Mr Jackson said: "We are all living longer and active for longer therefore patients tend to wear out their joints. The most effective treatment is joint replacement, which is the market we are in.

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"To balance that, there are more and more people needing joint replacements and there is going to be some downward pressure brought to bear, which we are already seeing.

"That's why it's important, if we are going to remain in the UK, that we are as efficient as we can be so we can offer products the NHS can afford to buy."

JRI has no plans to move offshore in the foreseeable future, he said.

"We will do everything we can for that not to happen. If you were producing a commodity, it would be very difficult to defend that position. We are making precision products."

FUTURE LIES IN INNOVATION

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Founded in 1969, JRI competes against four dominant United States-owned organisations, DePuy, Zimmer, Biomet and Stryker.

Managing director Keith Jackson said: "We are one of a dying breed of British manufacturers in the orthopaedic sector. A couple of our competitors displaced manufacturing jobs outside the UK."

Asked if British manufacturing has a future, Mr Jackson said: "It does, but it needs to be in innovative products. The days when we could safeguard our future by having high-quality products is fading. But if you have high technology products, things which require more brainpower, that's one area where the UK can compete."

JRI exports around a third of its products, predominantly to Europe.