Leveraging connected innovation intelligence to remain an industry leader
The medical device industry is one of the fastest growing sectors. According to the European Patent Office, medical technology and devices represent the single largest industry category for patents. With the sector moving fast and new entrants emerging into the market daily, eCential Robotics, the leading provider of the first all-in-one surgical 2D/3D platform, has sustained its competitive advantage by thoroughly understanding the landscape and anticipating the moves of competitors.
Competitive advantage with the right innovation intelligence
As heavy patent filers, using innovation intelligence to analyze the competitor landscape is a key part of eCential Robotics’ IP workflow. Prior to using PatSnap, eCential Robotics’ IP team was limited to free patent tools that often provided poor quality data, making it hard to know with certainty what competitors were doing and the true state of the medical device landscape. “Before using PatSnap, I was using free tools like Google Patents and Espacenet and my search efficiency was very poor,” said Clément Leray, IP Manager, eCential Robotics. “It was also very difficult for me to share the information I was retrieving. As a result, I had no way of capitalizing on the work I was doing. It was very time consuming.”
With the introduction of PatSnap, eCential Robotics has been able to leverage connected innovation intelligence to enhance its competitor watch process significantly. The IP team is now able to easily conduct daily patent monitoring, in addition to receiving real-time alerts on specific competitors or landscape activity. Leray credits PatSnap’s innovation intelligence solutions in helping eCential Robotics become more reactive and efficient in competitor watches, which has played a major role in influencing the company’s product strategy.
Enhanced collaboration between IP and R&D teams
With the increased need for cross departmental collaboration during the innovation lifecycle, Leray points to PatSnap’s success in bringing eCential Robotics’ IP and R&D teams more closely together. “On a day-to-day basis, PatSnap has been very useful for sharing patent information with the R&D team,” said Leray. “This is because there are several ways to get information out of PatSnap and share it. You can share information directly, set up email alerts with the emails of relevant people [on the R&D team] and also export documents.”
PatSnap’s solutions have allowed Leray and his team to easily supply the R&D team with relevant and tangible IP and technology information, resulting in stronger collaboration between the two teams. “My ultimate goal was to be able to feed IP to the R&D team,” said Leray. “I wanted IP to be a daily part of the R&D team’s lives, and without a tool like PatSnap it would have been nearly impossible.”
In addition to enhanced collaboration, the two teams are working more closely in shaping the future of eCential Robotics’ technologies by leveraging connected innovation intelligence, particularly patent information, to stimulate brainstorming sessions to solve for technical solutions.
Harmonized processes and increased efficiencies
While PatSnap’s robust solutions have helped eCential Robotics’ IP team conduct FTO and patentability analyses quicker and more efficiently, it’s also helped streamline the organization’s internal processes, which have allowed for more clarity across the organization. “Using PatSnap has allowed me to simplify the internal process of broadcasting patent information and harmonize the way I share information internally,” said Leray. “Before PatSnap, the information I provided stakeholders was sometimes confusing for them to interpret or understand, but now [with PatSnap] it’s harmonized, it’s simple, and they know what to expect when I share something with them.”
With improved competitor analysis, strong team collaboration and better internal processes, eCential Robotics has remained one of the leading medical device companies worldwide. PatSnap’s solutions have enabled the company to make stronger, better and more profitable business decisions that are backed by tangible connected innovation intelligence; all while implementing an IP strategy that builds on the successes of their efficiencies and keeps them ahead of their competitors.
