Not only does the San Isidro Free Zone park have a total investment of RD $ 5,000 million, but since 1998 it has housed in its infrastructure the largest medical device manufacturing company in the world.
In this Free Zone park, in addition to the US $ 254.4 million invested by the companies that installed here in 2020, is Medtronic, a company that produces 3,672 types of medical products from this country.
During a visit to the company, Paolo Tolari, CEO of Medtronic in the Dominican Republic, emphasized that the company is generating 4,206 jobs, of which 3,137 are direct. Of these, about 300 are professional workers engaged in administrative areas, while 70% of the employees belong to the workers’ level and about 20% are technical personnel, with this percentage expected to keep increasing.
Medtronic has an annual manufacturing cost of $ 312 million with a portfolio of medical products for sutures, surgeries and other specialties.
The three pillars of this business are maintained in each of the subsidiaries present in the countries where it operates and the Dominican Republic is no exception. These are innovation, globalization and socialization.
From pacemakers to therapy products, Medtronic has built a product portfolio to provide technology, solutions and therapy for cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological and diabetes medical conditions.
For some Medtronic San Isidro employees, their work is valuable because it has a profound impact on patients and extends health and life through medical products.
Staplers, skin applicators, ultrasound systems, pressure gauges and surgical access ports are just some of the equipment also manufactured at Medtronic San Isidro while there are devices manufactured for the treatment of hydrocephalus and some of these medical devices are used in specialties such as neurology and ENT.
Pandemic operations
Medtronic’s current investment is $ 150 million and while sales of some devices have declined due to the pandemic, others closely related to COVID have increased.
During a tour of the San Isidro Free Zone Park with the National Council of Export Free Zones (CNZFE), Medtronic executives emphasized that all manufactured products are exported to the United States for sterilization and from there to other countries.
Competitive advantage
Paolo Tolari, who was accompanied by the CNZFE’s Executive Director Daniel Liranzo, emphasized that Medtronic is investing heavily in the country because of its human talent, focused on competition.
“The investment climate in the Dominican Republic is good. The public and private sectors are our allies. We go to them every time we have to manage something and it is going very well ”, stressed Tolari.
Every week, Medtronic San Isidro exports approximately 18 containers to the United States and two to Europe.
production
Medtronic San Isidro’s Production Director, Dinorah Rodríguez, noted that the adhesive products have a production cost of US $ 119 million with 1,900 direct jobs and more than 150 production lines.
In the field of surgical instruments, this company, operating under the free zone regime, has production costs of $ 136 million and 40 production lines, generating 935 direct jobs.
In the Brain and Specialties product portfolio, the company has a manufacturing cost of $ 56 million and generates 302 direct jobs, with neovascular equipment likely to occupy most of the plant, said Virgilio de Pool, another executive. present on the tour.
An activity is being developed from San Isidro that faces a new medical challenge: COVID-19.
KNOWING MORE
The sector is stimulated
Transformation
The Dominican Free Zones have moved from textiles to diversification for 15 years, now including companies dedicated to telecommunications, paper products, jewelry, software development and others.
Infrastructure
The country has five free zone seaports and six international airports, with transportation being one of the reasons for attracting investment in the sector.