Senior Minister and International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali told the press that the global leader in tubeless insulin pump technology has planned to establish an insulin management facility in Johor on June 2 with a “significant amount” of investment.
Insulet is an innovative medical device company producing Omnipod, an automated device used for diabetic patients to administer insulin.
“The initial phase of the investment is expected to create about 500 quality high-skilled jobs for local talent,” he was quoted as saying.
“The success of this investment is not just in capital investment, but also to help build the supply chain ecosystem for our small and medium enterprises,” he added.
The senior minister is currently on a 10-day trade and investment mission in the US since May 8.
According to Azmin, Insulet has a long-term investment plan in Malaysia as it sees the country as a medical device manufacturing hub for it to cater to demand from not only Malaysia, but also from the region and other export markets.
“A ‘big announcement’ will be made on June 2 in conjunction with the launch of the new facility in Johor,” Azmin said.
Earlier on Wednesday, Azmin held a meeting with Insulet chief operating officer Charles Alpuche.
In a tweet, Azmin said Insulet’s decision to choose Malaysia was founded upon the nation’s excellent talent pipeline and accessibility to ports to support the supply chain.
“Insulet has expressed keen interest towards developing the local ecosystem and further advance knowledge transfer programmes through collaborative partnerships with universities and other industry stakeholders to upskill and reskill local talent.
“I expressed to Insulet that Malaysia is highly appreciative of this opportunity and looks forward to grow together with them,” he tweeted.
“Insulet’s investment would indeed open up vast opportunities for Malaysia, particularly in driving demand for local parts and components of medical device manufacturers,” according to his tweet.
“As a matter of fact, Alpuche informed me that Omnipod consists of 72 components, and they will outsource some of the components to local vendors in Malaysia. This will indeed open doors to bountiful possibilities for our local vendors to be integrated into the global supply chain of this industry,” he said.
In a separate tweet, Azmin shared that he had held a separate meeting with Boston Scientific Corporation, a leader in the medical device sector earlier on Wednesday.
“Since making its presence in Malaysia in 2015, Boston Scientific has continued to expand, powering the local medical industry through strategic collaborations with local vendor development efforts and capacity building programmes. With health gaining increasing prominence in the post-pandemic world, its presence in Malaysia will continue to positively impact the development of our medical device industry, adding further value to the ecosystem,” Azmin tweeted.
