We fund, develop, and commercialize start-up companies exclusively focused on various segments of the orthopedic sector.
Our team has extensive medical device experience and networks of relationships that will help our portfolio companies and our investors achieve their goals.
We focus on investing in and developing technologies that improve patient outcomes and reduce cost of implants for the healthcare industry.
All startups companies have two enemies, cash burn and time. GLW has assembled a Research & Development (“R&D”) team which can, and has, “hit the ground running” resulting in projects moving faster than what is usual and customary in our industry. We look for ways to maximize speed to market without sacrificing quality or core competency. Our R&D team has the ability to evaluate a product strategy, frame up ideas and prototype concepts (working closely with design surgeons and internal engineering staff to gather feedback and design input), and then implements product solutions quickly and effectively.
GLW believes that committing assets to the implementation and maintenance of a robust Quality Management System (“QMS”) is the way to “future-proof” our investment in a startup. We are in compliance with FDA 21 CFR part 820 Quality System Regulations with particular focus on: 1) Design Control; 2) Risk Management; 3) Document Control & Records Management; and 4) Supplier Management. Our QMS is overseen by quality, regulatory, and legal professionals with decades of combined experience in medical devices.
Design surgeons are an integral part of our design and development process. We assemble surgeon design teams specifically to each product and collect design and other product input from them. We identify the risks and concerns that surgeon design teams identify and then work systematically to mitigate those risks and address those concerns one after the next. Design surgeons are invaluable to our business strategy as they are the window into our future customer base. This approach, implementing design surgeon know-how from the start of the development process, is one of the key factors that makes investing in medical devices exciting.
Engaging physicians throughout all phases of development, from design concept through prototype development and feasibility, and eventually marketing and educational strategies, allows a GLW startup to provide a laser-focused approach to streamlining the entire process of bringing a product to market. This has vastly improved the speed of development and has shortened the turnaround time of implant design, generation, and manufacture.
We are passionate about our IP strategizing. Does the company have the freedom to operate in that field? What licenses might one need from third parties? We don’t waste money filing patent applications that are not essential to our product portfolio strategy. We restrict applications to those inventions that are worthwhile and those territories where there will have determined there will be a market or where we will be manufacturing. At the same time, we do not have tunnel-vision with respect to our IP strategy; we continuously consider and evaluate territories and markets where we might one day want to operate and do not limit ourselves only to those we are in today.
A successful product design process must proactively consider and account for what is needed for the end goal of manufacturing. We create functional prototypes using design that contemplates at every juncture the relevant manufacturability practices. Investing in scalable manufacturing processes while reducing implant cost is at the core of GLW business model.
Our innovative manufacturing processes do not restrict us in ways that traditional manufacturing currently does. This has given us significant degrees of freedom to allow for innovative designs that have never before been seen in the orthopedic market.
Engagement with end users is also very important to our product development process. Our team has an extensive collective network in the orthopedic and wider medical device marketplace including physicians, operators in manufacturing companies, and operators in distribution companies.
Through our deep network, we can build a vast body of knowledge in a short period of time. Members of GLW have worked diligently to build their relationships within the industry over the course of decades. These relationships make it possible to address and resolve very complex problems simply by making a quick phone call and having an informal conversation with some of the best minds in the industry.
We invest in surgeon entrepreneurs with great ideas and provide them with the advice, direction, resources, and funding required to start bringing their product visions to life. We use our shared services business model to create medical device startups and help set their strategies, provide key employees, optimize business development opportunities and raise additional capital. GLW typically invests $500k to $1M in seed round of a company and leads subsequent fundraising round(s) of capital financing needs.
Because of our unique background and expertise, we are able to fund, develop, and commercialize start-up companies with a great amount of confidence and proven talent. This allows us to make investments at earlier stages when valuations are much more attractive. This also typically provides us with larger ownership percentages in companies. This enables us to have a greater role in governance and operations of the companies in which we invest. In the end, by using shared services we are able to mitigate certain risks associated with our investments.
GLW Medical Innovation is led by a committed group of professionals, EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP, BOARD OF DIRECTORS and BOARD ADVISORY COMMITEE, with numerous years of experience in medical device and technology development. Their passion and vision are what drives GLW Medical Innovation each and every day.
To build a company that legitimately elevates the standards of its industry, one critical success factor is strong, intelligent, and insightful leadership. GLW’s EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP is comprised of some of the industry’s most experienced, motivated and innovative decision makers.
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Let’s create the future of surgery together.