It was young entrepreneur Michael Sauter's idea - to develop an intelligent bed which would prevent patients from developing bedsores and reduce the strain on health care professionals. Within just two years he has succeeded in building a secure financial base for his company, 'compliant concept'. The first round of funding has drawn to a successful conclusion; the company can now grow and by the end of this year its first products will be available on the Swiss market.

At the end of May 2011, two "business angels" and a banking institute invested one million Swiss francs in Michael Sauter's company «compliant concept». The successful end to this first round of financing is a milestone for the mechanical engineer and young entrepreneur. "This means that the intelligent bed can now become a reality," he says, joyfully. A detailed investigation by the investors came to the conclusion that his business is "forward-looking". The innovative new bed imitates the movements of a healthy person during sleep, thereby preventing bedridden patients from developing bedsores (also known as decubitus ulcers). This also relieves medical staff of the necessity of gently and frequently turning patients in the bed - this is done by a special mattress which lies on a joint-less but flexible slatted frame made of "smart" materials whose properties can be modified as required.

A successful spin-off from Empa and the ETH Zurich

The new system was developed by a team led by Michael Sauter, who two years ago founded a start-up company named «compliant concept». Supported by both Empa and the ETH Zürich, the spin-off enterprise currently boasts four employees (soon to be six) and is located in the glaTec technology center at Empa's Duebendorf site. "We are of course very pleased that we have found investors and industrial partners for the company," says Sauter. By the end of this year the first products, manufactured by an industrial partner, will be available on the Swiss market. "Despite this we are still interested in making new contacts with interested parties," he adds. After all, a second round of financing is not far away.

Thanks to an active exchange of ideas with contacts in the medical branch and good networking with potential partners, the young enterprise is already generating turnover. The company's Swiss sales partner, OBA AG, is marketing the monitoring system developed by 'compliant concept', which logs the patient's movements and initiates the repositioning operation. "We have already sold the first 20 systems through our Swiss marketing partner," maintains Sauter.

A growing company searching for new markets

"This injection of cash allows us to take more employees on board," explains Sauter, adding that he is now looking for a sales manager. He is also searching for new markets. As one of the 20 winners of the 'venture leaders' competition held by venturelab, Sauter had the opportunity of attending a 10 day business development program in Boston in July 2011. As a result of detailed discussions then, he is certain that in the USA hospitals and clinics are particularly aware of the decubitus problem - every year there are about 2.5 million cases in the country. Treatment to cure bedsores costs on average $43,000 per case. A solution such as that offered by Sauter's "intelligent" bed, with its prophylactic effect, is therefore especially welcome on the US market.

Source:
Dr. Michael Sauer
Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (EMPA