Medtech and life science innovation is intensely rigorous. It requires high levels of acumen and proficiency in multiple disciplines. It can also be immensely capital intensive.
Tiffany Wilson founded Atlanta’s Global Center for Medical Innovation (GCMI) in 2012 to help medtech innovators de-risk their technologies, increasing their odds of successful commercialization and positive patient outcomes within a phase gated, capital efficient pathway. The organization originated with support from the Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, part of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration, and an i6 Challenge Grant.
In 2016 GCMI, a Georgia Tech affiliate, acquired responsibility for T3 Labs – an industry leading preclinical CRO – making GCMI truly an end-to-end medtech innovation center. While a successful endeavor, the institutions determined that demand for costly preclinical work, especially good laboratory practices (GLP) studies required by regulatory submissions, is driven too far downstream in the product development process for optimal operational efficiency. GCMI therefore chose to focus on core design and development pathways in a more concentrated fashion leading to the November 2023 sale of T3 Labs to Veranex, a for profit enterprise.
No, GCMI has not been “taken private.”
GCMI remains a non-profit affiliate of Georgia Tech supporting medical technology innovators at every step on the commercialization pathway including: market analysis, IP landscape & freedom to operate, design history file generation including prototyping, 3D printing, FMEA analysis, associated design verification and validation testing, regulatory pathways, requirements and submission data and manufacturing transfer. We are also capable of serving as “manufacturer of record” for novel medical technologies.
GCMI’s Continuing Commitment to Excellence in Medtech Innovation
Scott Hollister, PhD
As we have for more than a decade, we help individual clinician innovators, start up companies, engineers and scientists with university supported technologies, medical technology customers of all sizes including industry partners and health systems. Because medtech innovation is endlessly more rigorous than other types of new technology commercialization or advancement, our proven phased, milestone driven process helps ensure our customers’ ideas and technologies follow a capital efficient path to market.
We have deep experience supporting innovators and startups. We maintain ISO 13485 Compliance quality management systems and possess expertise in all relevant subject matter critical to successful, capital efficient medtech innovation and commercialization including the clinician’s perspective via our Medical Director and pediatric urologist, Emily Blum, MD.
Our work in support of the local ecosystem specifically includes Hong Yeo’s flexible wireless stethoscope, Omer Inan’s IV infiltration mitigation systems, James Rains’ and Kamil Makhneija’s GloShield by Jackson Medical and Christopher Saldana’s PPE shields among others.
Other GCMI supported startups and health systems include:
- NFANT Labs
- Children’s Mercy Health System
- Piedmont Health System
- OXOS / MicroC
- Augment Health
- StrideLink
- Micron Technologies
You can examine other highlights of our work here.
GCMI’s offices have been located in the heart of Midtown Atlanta since 2012. We know the local, state and regional medtech ecosystem especially well. We also know how that ecosystem can support technologies originating from other locations around the country and around the world.
Though Atlanta is in its relative infancy as a medtech innovation center compared to other “legacy” hubs, our growth potential is high and GCMI intends to foster that growth actively. Our ecosystem of clinicians, hospitals, patients, universities, engineers, entrepreneurs, investors, solutions providers and supporting state and municipal resources is robust. Atlanta has additional biomarkers or leading indicators for medtech innovation like grant funding including the Georgia Research Alliance, startups spun out in the past, a mature funding ecosystem and patents issued. The new Science Square Labs is also evidence of the ecosystem’s health and growth potential as well.
Related: Is 2024 going to be the year of the Atlanta healthcare startup? Our friends at Hypepotamus think so.
At the end of the day, GCMI is fully committed to our customers’ success and welcomes you to contact us at any point in a technology’s pathway from the ‘back of the napkin’ to the bench, manufacturing, bedside and beyond. It’s never too early to get in touch.