PERTH, WA, October 2024

Arthrolase Joins Innovation Alliance Commited to Putting WA Medical Manufacturing On the World Map

ArthroLase has joined some of Western Australia’s most progressive biomedical innovators in a pioneering partnership that aims to foster practical collaborations and training opportunities between product designers, medical manufacturers, and academic researchers. In an announcement at AusBiotech 2024 in Melbourne, WA’s Minister for Innovation, Science and Medical Research, Hon Stephen Dawson, joined Professor Kevin Pfleger, Director of Biomedical and Health Innovation at the University of Western Australia, in announcing the expansion of the Springboard Medical Manufacturing Alliance from six members to 15.

The new partnership comes as ArthroLase ramps up development of its High-speed Intelligent Laser Osteotomy System (HAiLO), a pioneering platform that combines laser ablation, surgical robotics, and microscopic digital sensing in a ground-breaking new approach for the US$10 billion knee replacement industry.

Over the past 12 months, the company has enlisted some of the world’s leading arthroplasty developers and commercialisation specialists in a growing global network committed to guiding HAiLO™ through its final prototyping and first-in-human trials. Their faith in the system was underscored in March, when the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) committed its support to expedite HAiLO™’s regulatory progress under a Breakthrough Device Designation.

Facilitated by the University of Western Australia (UWA), the Springboard Alliance was established last year with a $2.7 million allocation from WA’s Investment Attraction Fund, matched by funding from its founding members: UWA, Alcolizer Technology, Adarsh Australia, Atamo Innovations, Metabolic Health Solutions, and VeinTech. The new members announced yesterday are: ArthroLase, Bridgewest Perth Pharma (the parent company of NovaCina and LumaCina), Epichem, Glide, Marine Biomedical, Neurotologix, Pretect Devices, Proteomics International, and SynGenis.

“The Alliance members aim to collaborate on a number of activities, including facilitating the sharing of best practice and activation of biomedical innovation and manufacturing facilities and precincts,” said Professor Pfleger. “They will also develop training opportunities including internships, and work with stakeholders to optimise the medical manufacturing supply and value chains, including access to international markets.”

ArthroLase CEO Brett Robertson said the company was delighted to have been invited to join the Alliance, enabling it to collaborate with some of WA’s most sophisticated medtech developers and manufacturers, and tap into the rich training ecosystem at UWA – where both he and co-founder Professor Riaz Khan received their PhDs, and continue their association as adjunct professors. “Although ArthroLase is supported by some of the most distinguished experts in robotic orthopaedics globally, WA has always been our home and we’re committed to supporting the local innovation ecosystem,” said Associate Professor Robertson. “It’s a pleasure and a real privilege to be joining some of the biggest names in medical technology in our State, so we can better share our expertise and experiences as we progress through the final stages in our market entry journey.”