aap Implantate AG signs exclusive sales agreement with sales partner in the People's Republic of China

aap has signed an exclusive sales agreement with a Chinese company, P&T Technology Co., Beijing. Given the size of the Chinese market and its potential, this move represents a further cornerstone in aap 's strategic internationalization.

P&T Technologies was founded five years ago. It concentrates on selling high-cost reabsorbable implants (plates and screws) and respiration equipment and material. P&T has emerged as a pioneer in selling reabsorbable implants in the Chinese market and is a clear market leader in this segment. Its head office in Beijing and its Shanghai branch employ a staff of 22. Field sales are handled in part via a network of over 22 dealerships in all parts of China.

China's dynamic economic development, the opening of the medical profession to the West and the adoption of new treatment techniques in sectors that include orthopaedic surgery open up entirely new sales prospects for international manufacturers. aap has taken up this challenge at a time when it is gaining increasing international recognition for its highly innovative bone treatment. It has done so in particular for its Biorigid Nail Tibia (BNT) used for intermedullary fixation of the lower extremity and for its hitherto unique and versatile Biorigid Femur System (BFS). These products will play a significant part even at an early stage of entry into a growth market like China's because they constitute a typically unique selling preposition for the Asian market.

Following the signing of an exclusive sales agreement with the japanese company Kobayashi Medical Devices (KMD) of Tokyo in January 1999 and the shipping of the first consignments of goods worth over half a million Deutsche marks, aap Implantate AG's strategy of international expansion has made further significant headway in the Asian market in particular.