Medical Technology

Together with the University Hospital Tübingen (UKT) and other development institutions, more than 75 internationally networked companies form the core of the Neckar-Alb region’s medical technology cluster. Located in the heart of Baden-Württemberg, our region is nestled between the Stuttgart economic area to the north and the medical technology region of Tuttlingen to the south. This is where innovative products are made: In business-oriented research centers, at “Medical Valley Hechingen”, and through technological exchange between key local industries. Comprehensive information at a glance is available in our brochure "Medical Technology in Neckar-Alb".

The Neckar-Alb region’s Medical Valley Hechingen has made a name for itself as an internationally recognized, high-tech location, with around 470 companies manufacturing medical products and tools both here and in nearby Tuttlingen. What makes Medical Valley Hechingen even more special is the fact that a majority of the local medical technology companies are part of an expert network. Supported by its member companies and the city of Hechingen, this network’s vision is to use the Medical Valley to create a “globally unique cradle of medical technology ideas and products.”

The Neckar-Alb region's infrastructure offers researchers and medical technology manufacturers many attractive benefits in addition to an attractive proximity to universities and business-related research institutions. Locally manufactured electromedicine products, blood pressure monitors, mobility aids, and stents are all in international demand and the list of exciting projects is long. For example the company Baxter-Gambro manufactures parts for dialysis machines that are vital for the survival of people with chronic kidney disease.

Areas of growth continue to include regenerative medicine, minimally invasive surgery, and computer-assisted treatments. Both the University Hospital Tübingen and the University of Tübingen, which has offered a degree in medical technology since 2010, provide important impulses for research and development in the region.

Business-related, commissioned research is also conducted by the Natural and Medical Sciences Institute (NMI) at the University of Tübingen. For approximately 25 years now, developers at the NMI have continued to make great strides in the areas of biomedical engineering, microsystems technology, and material sciences.