DKSH: Navigating Procurement Challenges in MedTech

Asia is fast emerging as the hub of global MedTech, yet progress from innovation to patient care is hindered by infrastructure shortfalls, inconsistent regulations and mounting cost pressures.

Leading efforts to overcome these barriers is DKSH and its healthcare division.

Procurement Magazine spoke to Brajesh Hurkat, Senior Director of Client Excellence for Distribution at DKSH Healthcare, who shares insights on strengthening MedTech supply chain resilience and how procurement leaders can support smaller healthcare providers.

What key trends are driving MedTech growth, across Asia especially?

Asia is rapidly emerging as a global hub for MedTech growth – not just as a manufacturing base but as a dynamic, innovation-driven market. Several key trends are fuelling this momentum. 

First, the region is experiencing a demographic shift. Aging populations and rising chronic disease burdens are driving demand for more sophisticated medical technologies. At the same time, growing middle-class populations across Southeast Asia and South Asia are expanding the pool of patients seeking quality care, often through private healthcare providers.

We’re also seeing significant government investment in healthcare infrastructure and digital health transformation which is opening up new opportunities for MedTech companies to participate in long-term system-building. Importantly, regulatory harmonisation efforts, such as ASEAN Medical Device Directives, are beginning to reduce some of the complexity of entering multiple markets.

Another defining trend is the evolution from product-focused to service-oriented, patient-centric care. MedTech firms are now expected to offer integrated solutions—combining devices, digital platforms, and value-based services. This shift is opening up new value pools but also requires deep local insight and agile execution. At DKSH, we see this as a space where our operational reach and on-the-ground expertise across Asia can bring significant value to both MedTech partners and healthcare providers.

What primary challenges does the MedTech sector face today from a supply chain perspective?

While the MedTech sector in Asia is growing rapidly, the supply chain environment remains highly complex and fragmented. One of the biggest challenges is infrastructure disparity. Many countries in the region have world-class hospitals in urban centres, but lack reliable logistics and storage capabilities in rural or secondary markets. This makes last-mile delivery expensive and inconsistent, particularly for cold chain and time-sensitive products like biologics or diagnostic devices.

Regulatory fragmentation also causes challenges for supply chains. Each market has different import requirements, product registrations and labelling standards, which can impact time-to-market and create challenges in inventory management. Additionally, the high variability in public and private healthcare systems across the region requires companies to navigate multiple procurement and distribution models.

At DKSH, we believe in enriching lives and that means ensuring everyone has access to quality healthcare. As such, we invest heavily in creating a more resilient and responsive supply chain network. This includes automating key logistics processes and enhancing cold chain capabilities to maintain integrity from port to patient. We also support our MedTech partners with real-time tracking platforms and multilingual support via solutions like “ConnectCustomer”, our digital platform and mobile app that enables smaller providers access to critical technologies and products. The goal is not just delivery, but equitable, scalable healthcare access across Asia.

How can distribution and commercial insights be used to help MedTech partners scale smarter pricing models and expand patient care?

As MedTech companies look to scale across Asia, pricing and access strategies must be tailored to the region’s economic and healthcare diversity. A one-size-fits-all pricing model rarely works in markets where public and private sector maturity, purchasing power, and patient needs vary dramatically. 

This is where the combination of strong distribution capabilities and localised commercial insights becomes a powerful enabler. By understanding how products move through different healthcare channels and where demand clusters exist, companies can shape pricing strategies that are both competitive and sustainable. This might include tiered pricing, flexible procurement models, or bundled service offerings that better align with providers’ needs and patients’ ability to pay.

At DKSH, we support our MedTech partners by providing access to real-time market trends and intelligence as well as on-the-ground operational expert insights. This allows for more agile decision-making—whether it is optimising inventory, identifying high-potential segments, or shaping smarter go-to-market strategies. Our goal is to help partners not only deliver products but expand patient access in a way that balances affordability with long-term commercial viability.

How is DKSH building more resilient MedTech supply chains in Asia’s remote and fragmented markets?

One of DKSH’s key strategies for strengthening MedTech supply chains across Asia is the development of regional hubs and satellite distribution centers that bring critical healthcare technologies closer to underserved areas. A recent example is our expanded distribution centre in East Malaysia, which now handles medical devices alongside pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter products. Similarly, our satellite facility in Northern Thailand enables faster delivery to hospitals in the northern region—significantly reducing lead times.

To ensure uninterrupted access, especially for temperature-sensitive products, DKSH has invested heavily in upgrading its cold chain infrastructure. This includes the safe transport and storage of MedTech items such as rapid diagnostic kits—where reagent stability is critical—and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) testing equipment, which relies on tightly controlled conditions. Our facilities in Malaysia feature calibrated freezers, cold room storage, and packaging systems that preserve temperature integrity for up to 72 hours, supported by real-time temperature monitoring.

Digital transformation is also central to our supply chain resilience. DKSH’s integrated logistics platforms offer real-time inventory visibility, order tracking and predictive analytics to improve responsiveness and planning. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, our distribution centre in Singapore launched a three-hour cold chain delivery service, increased the number of temperature loggers by 50%, and implemented radio-frequency systems to enhance warehouse efficiency.

Through a combination of infrastructure investment, digital capabilities and localised operations, DKSH continues to build a resilient MedTech supply chain that ensures consistent, high-quality access—even in Asia’s most fragmented and remote markets.