A multitude of active co-operation projects in medical technology cross company and institution boundaries and stimulate innovation, strengthen synergies and create new market potential for enterprises based here.

• 17 active cluster initiatives and sector networks make a valuable and important contribution to expanding Baden-Württemberg’s leading position.

• Tuttlingen houses the highest density of companies in the fields of endoscopy and surgical instruments in the world. Leading global companies such as Aesculap (B Braun Group), Karl Storz, Gambro and Erbe have their headquarters here.

• In addition, the metropolitan region of Rhine-Neckar with the Baden-Württemberg cities of Heidelberg and Karlsruhe is regarded as one of the leading “life science” areas of Germany. The German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ) and BASF register the largest number of patents relevant to the sector in the whole of Germany; the Roche group is a leading European company which has brought its diagnostics division to the region.

• Within Europe Baden-Württemberg also takes a leading position: according to an analysis carried out by the “European Cluster Observatory” of the European Union, the regions of Freiburg, Karlsruhe and Tübingen are amongst the most important “medical technology clusters” within the EU.