EPHJ-2020_La Newsletter du Salon_ANG
January 2020
January 2020
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<strong>La</strong> <strong>Newsletter</strong> <strong>du</strong> <strong>Salon</strong> | January <strong>2020</strong><br />
“We’re going to see a steady rise<br />
in international visitors”<br />
INTERVIEW WITH <strong>EPHJ</strong>’S DIRECTOR<br />
What were the stand-out aspects<br />
of <strong>EPHJ</strong> 2019 for you?<br />
Alexandre Catton, <strong>EPHJ</strong> Director: I was<br />
impressed by the care our exhibitors took<br />
with arranging and decorating their stands<br />
to show off their pro<strong>du</strong>cts to full advantage.<br />
Any little stories you’d like to<br />
share with us?<br />
Actually, I’ve realised that the show is<br />
never too far from my mind... <strong>La</strong>st year,<br />
I was driving to stay with some friends<br />
for the weekend. A company name that<br />
I saw on the journey stuck in my mind.<br />
I contacted them the following Monday<br />
only to discover that they’d just bought<br />
a machine to develop a watchmaking<br />
business. As a result, that company<br />
attended <strong>EPHJ</strong> for the first time in<br />
2019, and I understand they had quite a<br />
successful show…<br />
Was the increase in visitor<br />
numbers expected?<br />
We did everything we could to drive up<br />
attendance. Even though it’s a priority for<br />
us and we’re putting in the resources to<br />
attract more international visitors, it remains<br />
a challenge. But we’ll keep up the work in<br />
<strong>2020</strong>, focusing particularly on large buyers<br />
of medtech.<br />
What will be your main action<br />
areas for <strong>2020</strong>?<br />
Creating the best possible conditions<br />
for our exhibitors to do business<br />
by diversifying their markets. We’re<br />
going to go a step further in terms of<br />
communicating and promoting this<br />
expertise. We’ll also be meeting our<br />
exhibitors on their home ground.<br />
Will you continue your drive to<br />
internationalise the show’s visitor<br />
base?<br />
We make <strong>EPHJ</strong> a little more international<br />
each year, and the show already attracts<br />
visitors from 56 countries. We’re currently<br />
working on PR campaigns targeting<br />
customers and prospects outside<br />
Switzerland and through institutional<br />
partnerships.<br />
What are the main trends to look<br />
out for in <strong>2020</strong>?<br />
Traceability and sustainability are a<br />
major concern for big brands and the<br />
high-precision sector is no exception,<br />
particularly watchmaking and jewellery.<br />
This is an issue that we’ll be addressing.<br />
We also want to work with exhibitors to<br />
devote part of the show to recruitment.<br />
How do you see <strong>EPHJ</strong>’s role<br />
in the various initiatives<br />
being taken to support the<br />
watchmaking in<strong>du</strong>stry?<br />
This show was established to showcase<br />
watchmaking skills upstream and<br />
downstream of the finished pro<strong>du</strong>ct. All<br />
the brands come here to do business.<br />
That’s how we support the watchmaking<br />
in<strong>du</strong>stry: by creating the best possible<br />
ecosystem so that these two worlds can<br />
meet and grow together on a scale that<br />
extends beyond Switzerland’s borders.<br />
INTERVIEW WITH ALEXANDRE STEIMLE (FEMTOPRINT), WINNER OF THE 2019 EXHIBITORS’ GRAND PRIX<br />
“SPOT in-vitro tests have a 100%<br />
success rate”<br />
Can you tell us about the<br />
innovation that won you the 2019<br />
Exhibitors’ Grand Prix?<br />
Alexandre Steimle: The Safe Puncture<br />
Optimized Tool (SPOT) is a miniaturised<br />
surgical device for safely injecting a drug<br />
that dissolve clots into the retinal veins<br />
of patients with vascular disorders such<br />
as retinal vein occlusion (RVO). SPOT’s<br />
unique monolithic glass structure combines<br />
a 3D passive mechanical system with<br />
a microfluidic channel that extends the<br />
length of the device, all the way to the tip<br />
of the needle. The innovative adjustable<br />
bistable mechanism allows the surgeon to<br />
control the path of the injection needle and<br />
release the drug when required. The drug<br />
is thus injected as close as possible to the<br />
occlusion site, which drastically re<strong>du</strong>ces<br />
the complications often associated with<br />
venous cannulation.<br />
What stage are you at<br />
now, six months on?<br />
The first prototypes are currently<br />
undergoing in-vivo validation in<br />
the eyes of pigs and chicken<br />
embryos. The results of the<br />
in-vitro tests indicated a 100%<br />
success rate, in terms of both<br />
safe and controlled piercing and<br />
the actuation of the mechanical<br />
system. Nevertheless, we did<br />
make some adjustments to<br />
optimise the device, particularly<br />
with regard to its performance in<br />
injecting fluid to rinse the blocked<br />
veins.