Portfolio case studies continued

How do you measure progress?

Ultimately, CMR’s goal is more patients receiving the highest quality of surgical care. Versius has now been used in over 10,000 surgical cases around the world across 130 procedure types – which is a critical proof point that we are delivering on our mission.

What has been the biggest challenge to date?

Building a surgical robot is very difficult – CMR successfully achieved this and in a rapid time managed to bring Versius to the global market – going from concept to patient in five years. No other big established medtech companies with existing large customer footprints, deep industry knowledge and credibility have achieved this in such a short period of time.

CMR chartered the unknown to design a surgical robot that would meet our mission of increasing access to keyhole surgery for many people. Leveraging vast experience and understanding of keyhole surgery, software technology and engineering, but not of robotics, the team took calculated risks on disruptive technology design.

The development process for Versius was collaborative from the start, working alongside the surgical community to overcome design obstacles – such as whether to have cart mounted or bed mounted arms, or whether or not to have an open console design – to ensure a design evolution that ensured a system was being built in Versius that was compatible with the needs of busy surgical teams.

Another challenge CMR faced in the development of Versius is the rapid scaling of the business. To keep up with the demand for Versius and growth of its development, and the company’s growth, CMR faced space constraints as it grew, and the need to rapidly build a skilled workforce in order to have the capabilities to commercially produce Versius to keep up with demand. CMR overcame these challenges by bringing in a manufacturing and scale-up expert to revolutionise manufacturing practices and successfully implement a supply chain scaling programme, supporting CMR’s robust growth.

What is next?

To date, CMR has installed over 100 systems worldwide. CMR will continue to go deeper into existing markets, including Europe, Asia and Latin America as well as secure additional regulatory approvals in markets where Versius can provide differentiation to customers. CMR has also invested in a new manufacturing facility and global exports hub in the UK, which will be operational in 2023, to meet the global demand for Versius.