GE to make low-cost medical systems

General Electric plans to manufacture a whole range of low cost, no frills medical systems for the Indian and Chinese markets.

"We will manufacture these products in India and China," GE India CEO and president Scot Bayman said.

He added that once the low-cost medical systems have been developed, they would be exported to other emerging markets. "India and China could export to other developing countries that do not justify manufacturing of these products," he said.

GE's medical systems business worldwide is handled by GE Healthcare. It recorded a sales turnover of $14 billion in 2004. It specialises in the areas of medical imaging, medical diagnostics and patient monitoring systems.

Bayman said that, although these medical systems will carry a lower price tag, they would have all the functions of regular products.

"Though we are responding to the needs of the market from the cost point of view, these products will have high functionality," Bayman said, adding that the demand for medical systems like diagnostic machines was quite similar in India and China.

Talking about the products under development, Bayman said they will be easily portable so that they can be taken to remote villages in the two countries.

At present, the sale of medical systems is restricted to large urban centres. By making its medical systems more rugged, GE could rapidly expand its business in India and China.

At the moment, one group each in India and China are working on developing these products.

Once the products have been developed, some of these will be made in India and others in China. The progress made by the two groups, according to Bayman, will be reviewed during the course of the year.

When asked what were the price targets set for the two groups, Bayman said that it would depend on the design of the new products. "We have to get the right performance within the cost targets," he added.