37: A digital platform to create 3D printed braces & splints with Manuel Opitz from Mecuris

15 Minutes With The Doctor: Learn from Healthcare Entrepreneurs and Innovators

In this episode, Vinay is joined by Manuel Opitz, the Co-Founder of Mecuris, a digital workshop to create orthotics & prosthesis to save cost and time, and be more patient-centred. He aims to link the gap between digital manufacturing and medical technology. Learn about their platform, how the platform is being used to help 3D printing, and their plans for growth. What you will learn in this episode: What is Mecuris? Mecuris is a provider of medical services to help medical practitioners and orthotists digitalise their manufacturing process. Through 3D tech, Mecuris can create an orthosis process, from posture correction of a user scan, to modelling and configuration. It translates the traditional process into digital workflows and tools. What are the digital processes involved with platform? With 3D scanners available on smartphones, Mecuris is a portal to upload the 3D scanned image. It offers digital manufacturing like 3D printing and CNC milling using orthopaedics technology. They have partnerships with high-quality printing centres to support their users. How much does it cost? The basic version of Mecuris costs 65 Euros per month. They also offer a free basic version of the platform. The free version comes with a limited number of allowable downloads per month. What is the market size of Mecuris platform? Current software platforms cost an average price of 15 000 Euros and are used in over 1500 to 1800 workshops in Germany alone. In a workshop, usually, there are at least 10 medical professionals. This equates to approx. 45 million euros as a minimum in Germany alone. What’s next for Mecuris? One of the next steps is to roll it out for upper limbs and other areas like the neck and head. In the future, Mecuris also wants to specialise in other joints or partner with other manufacturers to integrate solutions that will cover more orthotics-related issues. Where do you see healthtech 5 years time? “There will be new business models, there will be diagnostic business models, therapeutic business models, or in our case, manufacturing business models around it. There will be a lot of new companies addressing patient needs that couldn't be fulfilled before, especially on a much more economically level.” Links: Website: Mecuris Once Daily: A digital platform to create 3D printed orthoses and prosthetics